Five city correction officers were injured at The Tombs on Monday morning after one of them tried Macing an unruly prisoner — and wound up dousing his colleagues, sources said.
The officer was trying to spray an inmate who was throwing an unknown liquid at him as the guards were struggling to get six unruly suspects back into their cells at around 10 a.m. at the Manhattan Detention Complex, sources said.
Two of the Boldest — including a female captain — were coughing and had oxygen masks on as they were escorted to ambulances outside the White Street facility.
A male officer walked out of the building on his own, his right arm in a sling.
All were transported to New York-Presbyterian Hospital.
A correction source insisted that the injuries were not the result of bad aim but rather the amount of Mace that was released.
A department spokeswoman added, “The safety of our officers is Commissioner [Joseph] Ponte’s number-one priority. That is why we have launched a comprehensive program of meaningful reform that includes many measures to improve officer safety — such as providing officers with specialized training in conflict de-escalation and mental-health first aid.”