MONROVIA, Liberia (AP) — Dozens of inmates escaped from a maximum security prison outside Liberia's capital over the weekend, authorities said Monday.

The 47 inmates were able to escape because of a breach in the prison security system, the Justice Ministry said in a statement. The prison is in Kakata, a town 55 kilometers (34 miles) northeast of the capital, Monrovia.

The ministry said that it was "deeply concerned about this incident and is taking all necessary measures to ensure the recapture of the escaped inmates.”

The country's national police have also deployed additional officers to assist in the search for the fugitives, the ministry said.

Prisons in Liberia are often severely overcrowded, and inmates lack access to enough food and basic medical care. Last year, a prison in Monrovia ran out of food, and two other prisons briefly stopped taking inmates because of food shortages.

A large number of inmates are also detained without a trial. In November 2022, a U.N. report found that 73% of the nationwide prison population were pretrial detainees.