Dozens of inmates have illegal phones seized after Government’s wildfires text alert tips off staff to hidden devices

DOZENS of prisoners had hidden phones seized after the Government issued its emergency wildfire alert — as panic gripped the nation. Startled inmates were rumbled when their smuggled devices suddenly blared out the siren sound on Friday evening. Dozens of prisoners had hidden phones seized after the Government issued its emergency wildfire alert — as panic gripped the nation Credit: Alamy Startled inmates were rumbled when their smuggled devices suddenly blared out the siren sound on Friday evening Credit: Getty A source told The Sun on Sunday: “Governors are laughing about it because so many have been caught with phones after the alert. It took prisoners by surprise and loads of their phones went off really loudly in cells and other areas. “Loads were caught red-handed and it also provided loads of intelligence about where phones were. Sign up for The Sun newsletter Thank you! “Prisoners can’t really get rid of them and, when there were more staff on, officers starting spinning cells to find ones that had gone off. “Some security teams were ready for it and told officers to use the alert to listen out for phones. But it took others by surprise and they reacted quickly.” Prisons where staff found illicit phones are said to include Feltham in West London, Frankland, County Durham, and South London’s Belmarsh. The source went on: “It is hilarious that the Government alert created all this intelligence in prisons. There would probably have been hundreds of phones found across the prison estate because of it. Inmates would have been gutted because phones are worth thousands behind bars and sometimes cost cons up to £4,000. “It is good that there is at least one benefit to the alerts.” The widely mocked Government warning was sent to every phone in England and Wales and warned of a heightened wildfire risk. Most read in The Sun It said: “Residents, landowners and visitors should not undertake any activity that could start a fire.” However it caused widespread panic nationwide, with motorists on major routes, including the M61 near Chorley, Lancs, reporting drivers slamming on their brakes as their mobiles went off in their vehicles. Motorists were also seen drifting across lanes as they tried to silence or check their phones. One posted online: “Loads of cars pulled on to the hard shoulder on the motorway to read their alert, very dangerous, but I suppose they wanted to check whether they were driving towards a danger.” Others said they “assumed the worst” before reading the message about the temporary barbecue ban. In Wales, it was initially sent out in the Welsh language but just 18 per cent of the country speak it. Some people dialled 999 or sought out people who could translate it. Retired photographer Richard Williams, 77, was drinking at a Wetherspoons in Colwyn Bay, North Wales. He said: “Every phone in the pub emitted an almighty beep as the Government alert was sent but no one in the pub had a clue what it meant as it was in Welsh. “People started running around in panic, in a desperate bid to find a Welsh speaker to translate the message. Eventually, after about ten minutes, the English version landed, but it felt a very long time.” The BBC’s 20th anniversary special of The One Show was interrupted when multiple phones around the studio simultaneously sounded. Bemused host Roman Kemp asked live on air: “Is there some sort of fire alarm going on?” A Prison Service spokesman said: “Mobile phones have no place in prisons, they undermine security, facilitate criminality, and can cause harm to victims and the public. “We have invested over £40million in physical security measures to clamp down on illicit items and those who break prison rules can face extra time behind bars.” Comment now