HALIFAX — Nova Scotia's Justice Department is investigating a physical altercation between a guard and an inmate at a Halifax-area jail.

A spokeswoman for the department, Donna Chislett, said there was no weapon involved in Friday's incident at the Nova Scotia Correctional Facility in Burnside.

Chislett declined further comment on the altercation.

However, Joan Jessome, president of the union that represents jail guards, said the corrections officer was punched in the face a couple of times as guards were doing inspections.

"It looked like the inmate was in trouble, so they opened the cell door and the inmate rushed the correctional officer and punched him," said Jessome.

Jessome said the other officers intervened and put the inmate back in his cell.

The injured guard drove himself to hospital after the incident, she said.

"They have to get checked out to make sure they're OK," said Jessome. "Certainly from the officers that I spoke with, they're not alarmed about any of the injuries."

The jail, which houses some of the province's most dangerous offenders, has been the scene of several recent assaults.

A guard suffered non-life-threatening injuries earlier this month after being stabbed by an inmate with a pen. A day earlier, an officer was punched by an inmate while on escort duty.

There was also the reported slashing of an inmate in July and another stabbing and a disturbance involving 17 inmates in June.

Justice Minister Ross Landry has since announced that all corrections officers working in Nova Scotia's five jails will eventually be outfitted with protective vests, starting with the Burnside facility.

Jessome said a number of guards told her that the latest incident couldn't have been prevented.

"They opened the door to see if the inmate was OK . . . and the inmate rushed them, there's no way for them to predict that the inmate would have done that," she said.

"It's unfortunate and we're very lucky that he wasn't seriously hurt."

Chislett said police will also conduct an investigation into the incident.