SYDNEY, May 15 (Xinhua) -- Three Australian prison guards were injured in a riot at a Victorian youth justice center late on Sunday night.
Police were called to the Malmsbury Youth Justice Center in central Victoria on Sunday night after reports emerged that a group of inmates had assaulted guards and damaged the facility.
The three officers were reportedly punched and kicked by the rioting inmates during the incident that left all three requiring medical attention.
Other units at the facility, which houses 45 inmates, were put into lockdown to ensure the riot did not spread.
A spokesperson for the Department of Justice and Regulation said only a small number of offenders were involved in the incident.
An anonymous source told Fairfax Media that the incident started when two inmates tried to gain access to a third who had allegedly attacked a female staff member at the center earlier in May.
When officers intervened a fight broke out.
Georgie Crozier, spokesperson for the opposition in Victoria, said riots were becoming too common at Malmsbury.
"This is another serious incident that has occurred at Malmsbury that just demonstrates that (Victorian Premier) Daniel Andrews has no authority," Crozier told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) on Monday.
"I think that Victorians are losing confidence in his ability to manage youth justice."
The state has found itself gripped by a youth detention crisis, with the incident at Malmsbury being the latest in a string of riots and assaults across Victoria's youth justice system.
Earlier in May, the court system found that an attempt by the government to house the worst youth offenders at the adult Barwon prison while repairs were carried out at youth facilities was illegal.
