Breakout at asylum 'jail'

At least a dozen refugees were on the run today after a night of rioting and arson at Britain's new £100 million asylum detention centre.

Police from across the South-East launched a huge manhunt following the break-out and mayhem at the Yarl's Wood Centre near Bedford. Householders were warned that the escaped men could be dangerous and told to lock all doors and windows.

Today, as more than 100 firefighters from three counties battled to prevent the inferno from destroying Europe's biggest asylum detention centre, at least four people were in hospital. Police were unable to confirm initial reports that some staff had been taken hostage and their keys stolen.

It is understood that hundreds of detainees, mainly eastern European, were involved in the riot, which started early yesterday evening. The situation rapidly got out of control and there were fears the state-of-the-art centre would be destroyed with appalling consequences for the estimated 400 men, women and children being detained there.

Gary Sanderson, of the Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire Ambulance Service, said two of the injured were members of staff and two were detainees.

He added: "We anticipate more casualties as people are standing outside in the cold in the middle of the night. They are still hostile." Temperatures last night fell below zero. Casualties were treated for "cuts and bruises", a spokeswoman for Bedford Hospital said.

By first light, Bedfordshire Fire Service was becoming increasingly concerned. The administration block, where the fire started, was "100 per cent alight" and " completely out of control".

A spokeswoman added: "It has now spread to a second wing, which is 50 per cent alight." She explained: "It's all linked and that's our problem. We are frantically trying to stop it spreading further."

Flames could be seen from several miles away as relief firefighters made their way to the detention centre. A security guard at the perimeter gates said: "The fire is absolutely huge. It's a disaster up there."

Yarl's Wood is built along the lines of the H-block Maze Prison in Northern Ireland, with several large detention units spread across the site.

A Home Office source said: "It certainly appears to be a breakout attempt and we suspect there have been escapes. There's obviously considerable confusion at the scene, but it looks very much as if around 15 detainees got away."

John Bates, a spokesman for Group 4, which runs the centre, said: "There is a major incident which the emergency services are responding to."

The first fire started shortly after 8pm in the reception hall in Delta Wing but was extinguished by firefighters wearing breathing apparatus. However, other fires in the same wing swiftly followed, and within a short time the centre was described as "50 per cent alight" by fire service spokeswoman Jacqui Manners.

Ms Manners said she could not comment on reports that detainees were locked into their rooms while the fire was being fought.

At one stage as many as 200 Eastern European detainees were reported to have climbed onto a roof. Later many, including a woman with a baby, were kept in a compound in the open air, away from the blaze.

At dawn 15 fire engines were still tackling the blaze "defensively" - trying to prevent it spreading from the administration wing to other parts of the centre. Backup was called in from Northamptonshire and Cambridgeshire fire services.

More than 200 uniformed police had been brought in from local stations and the Metropolitan Police and a cordon was in place around the centre.

The centre is the last stop for failed asylum seekers before being sent home. Doors to the accommodation rooms are not normally locked, but corridor gates can be closed in the event of a disturbance. The remaining refugees have been evacuated from the centre's buildings.

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