An escape attempted by 45 prisoners and under-trials at a prison in the port town of Vasco in Goa has been thwarted by police.

In a daring attempt to break out of an under-repair prison, the inmates on Tuesday night attacked a skeletal jail staff at the Sada sub jail, even as police have cordoned off the area, in a bid to stop the inmates from fleeing.

Speaking to IANS on Wednesday, Deputy Superintendent of Police (Vasco) Lawrence D'Souza said that the situation was being brought under control.

"We have put a security cordon around the prison and the injured jailor and the jail staff have been brought out of the prison premises," he said.

The prison staff have received injuries, most of them of minor nature, the official also said.

"We will investigate why and how the attack took place but right now our focus is on ensuring that none of the inmates slip away in the chaos," D'Souza said.

The sub jail is located 40 km from Panaji.