How Negligence Led to Deaths of 20 Persons in Illegal Bayelsa Refinery Fire

Fresh facts yesterday emerged as to how at least 20 persons were burnt beyond recognition penultimate Tuesday in an inferno at an illegal crude oil refining site in Kolo Creek, Ogbia Local Government Area, Bayelsa State.

Well over a week after the incident, none of the special security outfits deployed to fight illicit oil theft and refining in the Niger Delta region has issued a statement on the incident, but it was learnt yesterday that the agencies may have been aware of the existence of the site but declined to act.

The Joint Task Force (JTF), Operation Delta Safe (OPDS) and the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) are directly in charge of monitoring and curbing illegal bunkering, pipeline vandalism and proliferation of illegal refineries in the oil-rich region.

Quoting from a leaked memo copied the security commanders, a source informed THISDAY yesterday that since the 15th of September, the bodies responsible for stopping the illegal acts had been tipped about the activities of the bunkering syndicate.
THISDAY, December 14, 2017

 

RipplesNigeria… without borders, without fears

Click here to join the Ripples Nigeria WhatsApp group for latest updates.

Join the conversation

Opinions

Support Ripples Nigeria, hold up solutions journalism

Balanced, fearless journalism driven by data comes at huge financial costs.

As a media platform, we hold leadership accountable and will not trade the right to press freedom and free speech for a piece of cake.

If you like what we do, and are ready to uphold solutions journalism, kindly donate to the Ripples Nigeria cause.

Your support would help to ensure that citizens and institutions continue to have free access to credible and reliable information for societal development.

Donate Now