EBOLOWA, Cameroon, Aug 20 (Reuters) - Nine people died in a fire at a prison in the Cameroonian city Douala on Wednesday, the Ministry of Justice said.

Around 20 other prisoners in the maximum security New Bell prison in the West African port city were injured when the fire broke out at around 0500 (0400 GMT).

"A fire accident has killed nine prisoners," a spokesman for the ministry told Reuters, without giving any details of what started the fire.

The jail, built in 1933 for 800 inmates, holds over 3,000 detainees. Human rights campaigners say Cameroon's prisons suffer from chronic overcrowding, poor sanitation conditions and disease.

Guards shot dead 16 inmates during an attempted break-out in June this year, the third attempt in seven months. (Reporting by Tansa Musa; Editing by Daniel Magnowski)

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