As wildfires spread, over 500 inmates from the Northern Gyeongsang Province No. 2 Prison were transferred to other facilities. This is a measure in accordance with the law regarding the execution of sentences and the treatment of inmates. The law states that 'in the event of a natural disaster where there is no way to evacuate inside a correctional facility, inmates can be transported to another location.' In fact, it is rare to find instances where inmates have been transferred from prisons due to natural disasters such as wildfires.
An instance of prison transfer that was made public occurred on Nov. 28, 2023, at Daegu Prison. In this case, inmates were moved after the old prison became outdated and a new prison was constructed.
The transfer process at that time was carried out in a manner akin to a military operation. Armed police officers with K2 rifles, handguns, and tasers were deployed outside the prison from early morning, and helicopters hovered overhead. By 9 a.m., buses carrying inmates began to emerge from Daegu Prison, led by police motorcycles. Police cars followed the buses.
Correctional authorities mobilized large buses to transfer over 2,000 inmates to a newly constructed prison located in Habin-myeon, Daegu. Guards armed with handguns and gas guns boarded the transport buses to supervise the inmates. Over 300 police officers, including riot police, special forces, criminal investigation teams, and traffic police, as well as 12 patrol cars, were also deployed at the scene.
Additionally, police monitored every part of the prison transfer route in plain clothes to prepare for any possible escape during the transport. Military authorities were stationed along the path the transport buses would take and began their watch duty. The 'transport operation' to the new prison was concluded around 3:30 p.m. when over 30 buses arrived at the new facility.