Extreme Heat Waves Plague New York's Penitentiaries, with Conditions Reaching an All-Time High in 2022.
In the sweltering heat of recent weeks, New York state prisons have faced significant challenges in providing a comfortable environment for the incarcerated population. With limited air conditioning and poor ventilation, prisons across the state are struggling to keep up during the heatwaves.
One such facility, Sing Sing Correctional Facility, has been particularly hard-hit, with approximately 100 corrections officers calling out sick every day. This staffing crisis has made it difficult for incarcerated individuals like Joseph Desmond to obtain basic necessities such as ice or fans, as per prison agency guidance. Desmond, an incarcerated individual, spent much of the heat wave in a hot cell at Sing Sing, with up to 21 hours a day of confinement. He was able to buy a six-inch fan, but found it barely sufficient to cool his face.
Incarcerated people at Five Points Correctional Facility have resorted to sitting in the dark all day as the only way to get relief from the heat. The lack of officers has made it difficult to supervise programs and escort incarcerated people from one area to another, further exacerbating the problem.
The Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS) is developing a heat mitigation plan to address these issues. Currently, air conditioning is only available in medical areas and limited spaces like the nursery at Bedford Hills Correctional Facility. Most housing units lack AC and rely on ventilation that meets American Correctional Association standards but is often insufficient in extreme heat. Staff have been instructed to keep incarcerated people hydrated, monitor for heat stroke, and use available fans, but many prisoners experience prolonged lockdowns in overheated cells with little relief.
Regarding personal fans, the difficulties of providing them as standard practice likely include security concerns, logistical challenges, and possibly inadequate infrastructure to support widespread fan use. Although DOCCS mentions the use of “all available fans,” the scarcity of fans and the risk of misuse or safety hazards may limit their distribution. Moreover, prisons typically control items allowed in cells strictly to prevent contraband or weapons, which can make issuing personal fans complicated. The lack of a formal, widespread policy or mandate for fans reflects these constraints and the broader infrastructural limitations of the aging prison facilities.
In an attempt to alleviate the situation, a nonprofit organization, New Hour, raised funds to purchase fans for incarcerated women, but had to buy them from an approved third-party vendor. State Senator Julia Salazar mentioned that obtaining a permit for fans can take anywhere from 48 hours to several weeks.
The staffing crisis has led to the cancellation or shortening of college courses, religious services, work release, outdoor recreation, and more. The temperature in Ossining reached 90 degrees three times last week, and the heat index peaked at 109. Incarcerated people's complaints about heat are common.
In response to these issues, Governor Kathy Hochul signed a law in 2021 requiring DOCCS to establish more heat mitigation regulations. However, the department is yet to publish those regulations. The DOCCS did not answer questions about why it doesn't provide free personal fans or why it limits the size of fans incarcerated people can possess.
[1] Source: The Marshall Project and The New York Times
- The governor of New York, Kathy Hochul, signed legislation in 2021, requiring the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS) to establish more heat mitigation regulations.
- DOCCS is yet to publish these regulations, despite the sweltering heat faced by prisons in recent weeks.
- Incarcerated individuals like Joseph Desmond at Sing Sing Correctional Facility have struggled in the heat, with up to 21 hours a day of confinement in overheated cells.
- Due to staffing shortages, programs such as college courses, religious services, work release, and outdoor recreation have been canceled or shortened.
- A nonprofit organization, New Hour, tried to alleviate the situation by raising funds to purchase fans for incarcerated women, but faced logistical challenges in obtaining a permit, which can take anywhere from 48 hours to several weeks.
- The Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS) has limited air conditioning and relies on ventilation that meets American Correctional Association standards, but is often insufficient in extreme heat.
- In an attempt to address climate-change-related issues, Governor Hochul seems to be focusing on housing, health-and-wellness, and mental-health, but the lack of action regarding the prisons indicates a gap in her climate policy.
- Environmental science experts suggest that the climate-change-induced heatwaves are becoming more frequent and severe, highlighting the need for immediate measures to improve prison conditions and protect the incarcerated population's health and well-being.
