Facing up to the challenges of working in a maximum security correctional facility may not be for everyone.
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But thankfully for the rest of us there are some who have chosen to work behind the wire.
Correctional officers Jane Lohse and Aisea Langi currently serve at Lithgow Correctional Centre and both highlighted the teamwork involved in their roles as one of the reasons they enjoy the job when the Lithgow Mercury toured the facility with the officers.
Ms Lohse has spent 20 years working at Lithgow and has experienced much in her time and, along with the other staff, didn’t bat an eyelid during the verbal sprays headed our way from inmates when we were in eyesight.
The 64-year-old is currently working on frontline duties but has previously worked with the security threat group for more than 10 years, which dealt with violent and challenging offenders, many of who were part of gangs.
“The role was very demanding and it was intense work but staff were specially trained,” she says.
Ms Lohse recognised the risks of her job and was happy when a shift ended with everyone going home vertically and not injured.
Mr Langi has been at Lithgow for two years. His role is at the pointy end of affairs at the prison in the Immediate Action Team.
The 26-year-old says being part of the IAT team that receives advanced emergency response training, is a very important job in the maximum security correctional centre as he and his colleagues are the first to respond to major incidents, including assaults.
“We also conduct patrols around the centre to ensure the good order and security in the centre,” Mr Langi says.
He doesn’t shy away from what he does and being nominated for IAT is a highlight of his career.
“It’s about being proactive and showing a presence, vigilance as well.
“We are a close, supportive network as it’s a high-stress environment. We don’t bottle it up.
Measures that would come in handy for moments like in the previous three days when an inmate had ripped a metal toilet off the wall three times to use as weapon against staff.
But Mr Langi says staff do their best to build a rapport with inmates to prevent an incident before it happens.
“We are about deescalating situations by changing inmates’ behaviour,” he says.
“A lot of this is done through communication.”
The inmates certainly also see the value of communication as we pass by them exercising in their yards.
It is a different story when we enter the textiles section where inmates work with little noise except for the sewing machines.