At least 31 inmates died and 13 others were injured in a fight on Wednesday between different gangs in a prison in the northern Mexican state of Tamaulipas, officials said.

The riot, with knives and homemade guns used, began in the afternoon and was controlled hours later, said Guillermo Martinez, spokesman for the Tamaulipas state government.

The incident took place in the Centre for the Execution of Sanctions of Altamira in an urban area near to a port whose perimeter is guarded by soldiers and federal agents.