Experiments conducted by a senior police official attached to the Firearms and Use of Force Task Group have revealed that the deadly fire at the Armadale Juvenile Correctional Centre could have been started by tear gas allegedly hurled into the building.

Assistant Commission of Police Paul Robinson provided the results of eight experiments that were conducted with handball CS grenades (tear gas) during yesterday's sitting of the commission of enquiry into the May 22 fire at Armadale.

Robinson told the enquiry that in one of the experiments, a handball CS grenade was initiated and thrown on to a foam mattress similar to those kept in local correctional facilities.

He noted that the cotton cover of the mattress was scorched, and a jet of chlorobenzalmalononitrile (CS) bore a hole through the mattress, but no fire was seen.

However, in another experiment, Robinson said the handball grenade was initiated and the mattress placed on it. He said that initially, the heat and force of the CS made two holes in the mattress and "smoke was seen around the area of the holes". Within two minutes, the entire mattress was in flames.

Used worldwide

Robinson told the enquiry that the CS gas, which is contained in the handball grenade, is used worldwide to dispel crowds but, if thrown into a room, should be a part of a larger plan that would include evacuation of persons inside.

Sylvia Passley, the acting director of rehabilitation at the Department of Correctional Services, also testified yesterday - Day 22 of the enquiry.

Passley said she has been in her current post since last December but has not visited Armadale since 2007, and was never aware of any negative reports from the institution.

She said she did not know that classes were not being held while the girls were on lockdown and she was never advised that the girls were on lockdown for extended periods at the St Ann institution. This, she noted, would not be conducive to learning or rehabilitation.

"It would bring frustration among the wards," she said.

Passley said she was never aware of housing problems and when asked how many dorms were at Armadale, she paused for a while before saying she was not aware of the number.

However, on the matter of the buckets which the wards were using as toilets, Passley said she was not aware of it but "I suppose it impinges on their dignity".

The enquiry resumes at 10 a.m. today at the National Volunteer Centre in St Andrew. A forensic expert is scheduled to testify.

kimesha.walters@gleanerjm.com