Panic has gripped Okrika Local Government Area of Rivers State following an incident in which several people suspected of illegally siphoning petroleum products reportedly died after inhaling toxic fumes.
While community sources put the death toll at 43, the Rivers State Police Command said it could not confirm the actual number of casualties, noting that an investigation was ongoing.
The incident reportedly occurred around midnight on Thursday, September 3, 2026, at Okari Jetty in the Okrika Mainland area.
According to community sources, a vessel had anchored at the jetty to load petroleum products for export when more than 200 people, mostly youths from neighbouring communities, allegedly arrived in locally made boats to siphon petroleum products through an illegal tapping point.
A source said the situation turned tragic when fumes from the petroleum product reportedly filled the area, causing several people at the scene to collapse.
Some victims were said to have fallen into the river, while others who managed to escape reportedly suffered serious respiratory complications and were rushed to hospitals for treatment.
The source claimed that 37 of the bodies recovered had been identified as indigenes of Okrika, while six others remained unidentified. Several people were also reportedly missing.
The Youths and Environmental Advocacy Centre (YEAC-Nigeria) confirmed the incident, saying its network of youth volunteers and human rights defenders across the Niger Delta reported that at least 37 people had died after inhaling what was locally referred to as “Indorama fuel.”
The Executive Director of YEAC-Nigeria, Dr Fyneface Dumnamene Fyneface, said the deaths occurred during an alleged attempt to illegally load the petroleum product into boats.
According to him, the victims had reportedly connected a pipe to an illegal tapping point on a pipeline believed to transport petroleum products from Indorama Eleme Petrochemicals through the Port Harcourt Refinery to vessels that visit the area to load products for export.
Fyneface said the product was being pumped at high pressure when the victims allegedly inhaled the fumes, resulting in multiple deaths.
He added that some bodies had reportedly been seen floating on the river but had yet to be recovered, while several others remained missing.
Fyneface called on the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA) to conduct a Joint Investigation Visit to the site to establish the circumstances surrounding the incident.
He also urged companies whose facilities were allegedly vandalised to strengthen security around their pipelines to prevent similar incidents.
While condemning pipeline vandalism and illegal siphoning of petroleum products, Fyneface warned youths against approaching oil and gas infrastructure because of the dangers posed by high-pressure petroleum products.
He further appealed to the government to provide alternative livelihood opportunities for artisanal refiners and other vulnerable residents in the Niger Delta.
Meanwhile, the Rivers State Police Public Relations Officer, ASP Blessing Agabe Kaborio, said the command could not confirm the reported death toll.
Kaborio said several people who went to scoop crude oil had died in the process but declined to give a specific figure pending the conclusion of the investigation.
“A number of people who went to scoop crude oil died in the process. I cannot volunteer the actual figure now because investigation is still ongoing,” she said.
The police said the ongoing investigation would establish the circumstances surrounding the incident and determine the actual number of casualties.
