20 hurt when inmate sets fire at NYC’s Rikers Island jail

NEW YORK (AP) — Authorities say 20 people were injured in a fire set by an inmate at New York City’s troubled Rikers Island jail complex. The city Correction Department says 15 staff members and five inmates were injured in the fire that started about 1:30 p.m. Thursday. The New York Fire Department extinguished the blaze within an hour. The fire department says 15 of the injured were taken to hospitals for treatment, while the other five declined medical attention. Information on the victims’ conditions was not available Friday. The fire broke out on a day when a group of Democratic state lawmakers visited Rikers to underscore their opposition to Gov. Kathy Hochul’s proposed changes to New York’s bail laws.