A lengthy lockdown at the medium security unit at Mission Institution has ended.
The "exceptional search" began Nov. 15 after prison guards discovered contraband inside the prison.
"We just methodically go through each unit and then we search the inmates and we also search the common areas around the units and we do a thorough search for contraband and then we go back to normal," said Gordon Mattson, assistant warden management services at Mission Institution.
The medium security unit has 373 inmates.
"So that takes a while," he added. "And we have to do that and, in the meantime, we are feeding and providing medication lines and all those things at the same that we are searching."
As of Friday (Nov. 21), the regular visitation schedule has resumed at Mission Institution.
In a release, Mattson noted: "Correctional Service Canada (CSC) is strengthening measures to prevent the entry of contraband into its institutions in order to ensure a safe and secure environment for everyone."