ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — More than 100 inmates have escaped from a prison in Nigeria near the capital city of Abuja after overnight heavy rains destroyed parts of the facility, a prison official said Thursday, as security agencies searched for the fleeing prisoners.

The downpour, which lasted for several hours on Wednesday night, destroyed the perimeter fence of the medium-security prison in the neighboring town of Suleja, in Niger state, “giving way to the escape of a total of 118 inmates from the facility,” according to Adamu Duza, a prisons spokesman.

The prison service and other agencies have managed to recapture 10 of the escaped inmates while the search is on to find the rest, Duza said.

There are fears that they could find their way into the vast forests that connect Suleja town and neighboring states, some of which are known hideouts for criminal gangs.