FISHKILL – The extremely cold weather this past weekend dropped temperatures in some housing units at Downstate Correctional Facility, but despite claims from family members of prisoners at the Fishkill facility that there was no heat, prison officials say that was not the case.
“The heat was always on and there were no frozen toilets,” the spokesman said. “Since temperatures ran cooler in some housing units, a temporary boiler was utilized and extra blankets were made available. Additional heating units known as frost fighters were also in place but were not necessary.”
A number of visitors to prisoners at Downstate on Monday called Mid-Hudson News to say the inmates were freezing because of a lack of heat.
