Several hundred female inmates in Chile escaped during the massive evacuation of the coastal areas following the 8.2 magnitude earthquake on Monday night.
The quake sparked a tsunami warning, forcing prison officials at Iquique to attempt to move 300 female prisoners. During the evacuation attempt, a wall reportedly collapsed and almost 300 inmates made a run for it. It was also reportedthat they managed to set the prison ablaze.
39 were recaptured while over 100 voluntarily returned to the jail after the chaos subsided.
After the jailbreak, interior minister Rodrigo Penailillo ordered 100 anti-riot police to the area to track down the women.
Almost a million people evacuated the coast after the warning was issued. It was cancelled after a few hours.
Picture: Getty
This article originally appeared on The Debrief.