LAGOS
At least 43 people have died after inhaling toxic fumes during an illegal petroleum siphoning operation in Nigeria’s southern Rivers State, authorities said Thursday.
It occurred around midnight at the Okari Jetty in the Okrika Local Government Area, where a vessel was reportedly loading petroleum products for export.
Residents told Anadolu that more than 200 youths from Okrika and neighboring communities arrived in wooden boats and attempted to siphon petroleum products from an illegally connected tapping point on a pipeline linked to the facility.
The victims were overwhelmed, however, by concentrated fumes while loading the petroleum product into their boats. Several lost consciousness, while some reportedly fell into the river and drowned.
“Investigations are going on to unravel the gravity of the incident,” said Police spokesperson Blessing Agabe.
The Youths and Environmental Advocacy Centre (YEAC-Nigeria), a Niger Delta-based environmental and human rights organization, confirmed reports of multiple deaths, with Executive Director Fyneface Dumnamene Fyneface saying the victims had allegedly connected a pipe to a tapping point on a pipeline transporting petroleum products from the Indorama Eleme Petrochemicals area through the Port Harcourt refinery corridor to vessels loading products for export.
Fyneface said the product was being pumped through the pipeline at high pressure when the youths simultaneously loaded it into waiting boats, exposing them to toxic fumes.
He said bodies were seen floating on the river, while others are missing.
The tragedy points to the continuing risks associated with illegal oil bunkering and petroleum theft in the oil-rich Niger Delta region. Security agencies have continued operations against crude oil theft, illegal refining and the illicit transportation of petroleum products in Rivers State and neighboring areas.
Nigerian troops reported dismantling 10 illegal refining sites in April and arresting nine suspected oil thieves during operations in Rivers, Delta and Akwa Ibom states. The military also said it recovered more than 130,000 liters (34,343 gallons) of stolen crude oil and over 26,000 liters of automotive gas oil during the operations.
More recently, the Nigerian Navy reported dismantling two illegal refining sites in Rivers State and recovering 34,000 liters of suspected illegally refined automotive gas oil during an Aug. 28 operation.
