STOCKHOLM — Two prison guards have been taken hostage at a Swedish penitentiary, with officials saying Wednesday that two inmates have barricaded themselves in an area of the building along with their hostages.

“This is a very dangerous situation,” the Swedish Prison and Probation Service said.

The inmates broke into a guard room in one of the prison wards soon after midday and covered surveillance cameras there, it said.

The two inmates are convicted murderers, according to Swedish news agency TT. Media reports said they are demanding a helicopter for their getaway.

“The inmates have been convicted of serious crime. The Swedish Prison and Probation Service’s negotiators, task force and police are on site and the situation is frozen,” the Swedish probations services’ acting security chief Jorgen From Nordin told TT.

The penitentiary is located is Eskilstuna, some 120 kilometers (75 miles) west of the capital, Stockholm.