Acting Commissioner praises extraordinary efforts of officers at Palen Creek Correctional Centre

Acting Commissioner James Koulouris has praised the efforts of all Queensland Corrective Services (QCS) officers involved in the evacuation at Palen Creek Correctional Centre and the ongoing support they are providing emergency services.

On November 12, 133 low security male prisoners were safety evacuated from Palen Creek Correctional Centre (PCCC) due to the bushfire threat in the area.

The prisoners were all transferred to Borallon Training and Correctional Centre (BTCC) and will remain here until the area is declared safe.

An amazing feat of logistics and planning, all prisoners were able to be transferred over the space of an afternoon.

Acting Commissioner James Koulouris said that he was thankful and proud of the tireless and ongoing efforts of all officers from PCCC and BTCC.

“All our officers that help plan and facilitate the transfer of 133 prisoners in the space of four hours should be commended for their amazing work,” Acting Commissioner Koulouris said.

“The amount that was done in a short period of time to safely transfer the prisoners was remarkable and I want to acknowledge that it was the hard work of all the officers that made this possible.

Some of our officers have been personally affected by the bushfires and others are fighting them as volunteers and they have all displayed tenacity and resilience to continue their duties.

Many have worked long hours and selflessly donated their own time and resources to help emergency service workers in the area while they have been fighting these fires.

I also would like to acknowledge the amount of hours that our officers are working at the BTCC and the challenges they have faced due to the increased prisoner numbers.

You are all a credit to the QCS and I personally thank you all for your hard work.”