California State Prison riot at Folsom

(CBS/AP) SACRAMENTO, Calif. - Two inmates were stabbed multiple times and others were injured during a riot involving about 150 inmates Friday at the maximum-security prison at Folsom near Sacramento, prison officials said.

Guards fired a warning shot and used pepper spray to break up the fight in an outdoor recreation yard at the California State Prison facility about 20 miles east of the state capital. It houses about 3,000 inmates.

The condition of the two inmates who were stabbed was not immediately known, said Terry Thornton, a spokeswoman for the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.

Several other inmates were taken to outside hospitals, while others were treated at the prison for minor injuries, she said. The number of injured inmates and their medical conditions was not immediately known, she said.

No guards or other staff members were hurt during the skirmish, which began about 10:30 a.m.

The fight involved inmates from several different racial groups, but it is not clear why it started, Thornton said.

"That, is, of course going to be investigated," she said.

Thornton said she did not know how quickly the fight was contained. The prison halted most inmate movements while it was investigated.

The brawl was on the B-Facility main exercise yard at the prison, which opened in 1986. It is next door to the much older Folsom State Prison. About 1,700 employees work at the CaliforniaState Prison, Sacramento.