"[The bureau] is securing our facilities as a temporary measure to ensure the good order of our institutions", BOP spokesman Emery Nelson was cited as saying by NBC News.
The lockdown, which will apply to 120 federal penitentiary facilities will force prisoners to be generally confined to their cells without the opportunity for walkouts.
"For safety and security reasons, the BOP does not elaborate on specific security procedures," Nelson added, stressing though that the lockdown is expected to be "a short-lived measure".
Earlier in the day, a fight broke out between several inmates at the US Penitentiary Beaumont in Texas resulting in four prisoners being hospitalised. The clashes left two inmates dead after they were brought in for medical care.