Fire erupts inside Haiti's National Penitentiary after nearly 4,000 prisoners escape

March 14 (UPI) -- Black smoke could be seen billowing out of Haiti's National Penitentiary Thursday after armed gangs led a jailbreak earlier this month.

The fire that broke out at the now-empty prison is the latest incident in the chaos-stricken capital of Port-au-Prince amid Prime Minister Ariel Henry's announced resignation.

Marie Yolene Gilles, a human-rights activist with Eyes Wide Open/La Fondasyon Je Klere, which monitors Haiti's prison system, told the Miami Herald that the fire at the prison appeared to have started in the high-security part of the prison where kidnappers and high profile criminals were kept.

The source of the blaze is unknown, but it is so far suspected to have been accidental, the Miami Herald said.

The prison now stands empty after armed gangs stormed it on March 2 and freed nearly 4,000 prisoners, including notable gang leaders.

The few prisoners who did not escape were relocated within a day of the attack. Among those were 17 Colombians indicted in the July 2021 assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moïse.

With mounting pressure from international leaders for him to step down, Henry has vowed to dissolve his administration once a transitional council has been established.

Port-au-Prince now is all but in the hands of gangs who lashed out at Henry's previous bid to remain in power until August 2025. According to a 2022 political agreement, his term as prime minister should have ended in February.

Jimmy "Barbecue" Chérizier, a former police officer and leader of the powerful G9 Family and Allies gang has called for "civil war" and "genocide" if Henry would not resign.

The embattled prime minister has been in Puerto Rico for most of the month, unable to return to his country after traveling to Kenya to lobby for a United Nations-led task force to reestablish order.

The United Nations said Thursday it plans to send humanitarian aid to Haiti across its border with the Dominican Republic.

The U.S. Marines on Wednesday deployed an anti-terrorism security team to protect the U.S. Embassy in Port-au-Prince.

U.S. Southern Command has said the embassy remains open but in limited capacity after Marines airlifted non-essential personnel to safety.