One inmate is dead and two others have been hospitalized after a brawl at the Saskatchewan Penitentiary in Prince Albert Monday afternoon.

The maximum-security unit at the prison was locked down after a fight broke out involving at least 10 inmates, Corrections Canada said.

The fight broke out in a large common area of the prison, according to spokesperson Darcy Begrand.

No names have been released until next-of-kin are notified. No staff injuries have been reported.

Begrand said such a large brawl is uncommon. He said one focus of an upcoming internal investigation will be finding ways to prevent similar fights from happening in the future.

"We have to use these incidents as a learning experience as well," Begrand said.

The RCMP are also investigating the incident. As in all cases where an individual dies while in custody, the coroner has been called in to investigate.

Saskatchewan Penitentiary is a federal penitentiary located one kilometre west of Prince Albert, Sask., and accommodates 493 medium-security inmates and 153 maximum-security inmates.