Six prisoners at Hawkes Bay Regional Prison remain on the roof of the youth unit after climbing on top of the building on Monday afternoon.
Liz Hawthorn, Lower North Regional Commissioner said in a statement that the initial incident occurred around 2.30pm.
In an update at 8.30pm, Hawthorn said the prisoners were still up there and are aged from 17 to19.
"The area is within the secure perimeter of the prison’s unit. There is no threat to the wider security of the prison and no threat to public safety."
"All other prisoners in the youth unit have been safely secured."
"Staff responded immediately to contain the incident this afternoon."
Hawthorn said that "all appropriate steps" were being taken to resolve the issue and ensure the prisoners' safety, "including bringing in Advanced Control and Restraint (ACR) and Prison Negotiation (PNT) teams to engage with the prisoners".
Police said they were not involved in the incident.
Earlier, nearby residents had received an email "to advise our community neighbours that we are currently managing an ongoing incident on our site that may go into this evening".
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