Major search underway for New York prison escapees

Police in the US state of New York are searching for two murderers who escaped from a maximum security prison with the help of power tools.

Prisoners Richard Matt and David Sweat escaped by drilling through metal walls and following plumbing and internal walls to escape through a manhole cover on a street outside.

The state's governor said there hasn't been an escape like this since the prison was built 150 years ago.

Bill Hayton reports.