Two convicted murderers escaped from a maximum security prison in upstate New York by cutting through a steel wall and following a series of tunnels until they emerged from a manhole outside the prison walls, authorities said Saturday afternoon.

Richard Matt, 48, and David Sweat, 34, were discovered missing at the 5:30 a.m. “standing count” of inmates at the Clinton Correctional Facility in Dannemora, New York State Police said on the agency’s Facebook page.

An intense manhunt was underway with more than 200 law enforcement officers looking for the men — the first to escape from the maximum security portion of the prison, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said at a press conference.

“These are dangerous people,” he said. “They are nothing to be trifled with.”

The prisoners apparently were last seen at 10:30 p.m. Friday during a standing count, authorities said.

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