According to a local security officer and community leader on Tuesday (Oct. 3, 2023), an explosion at an unauthorized oil refinery in southern Nigeria resulted in the death of at least 37 persons, including two pregnant women.
In the oil-rich Niger Delta region of Nigeria, illegal refining is widespread because poor residents steal fuel from pipelines to sell for a profit. It might be as simple as heating crude oil in drums to extract fuel, but the process is frequently fatal.
Rufus Welekem, the community’s head of security, reported that the most recent incident took place in the early hours of Monday (Oct. 2, 2023) in the Ibaa village in Rivers State.
At an open area with burned-out palm palms and a motorcycle nearby, a Reuters witness observed the burned corpses of 15 people.
“Thirty-five people were caught in the fire. Two people who were lucky to escape also died this morning in hospital,” said Welekem.
Relatives had identified some of the victims and taken them for burial, he said.
Local environmental groups claim that Nigeria has attempted to shut down illegal crude refineries for years with little success, in part because to the involvement of well-connected politicians and security personnel.
Oil majors operating in Nigeria are being forced to sell their onshore and shallow water assets in order to focus on deep water operations due to crude oil theft, pipeline vandalism, and legal disputes over oil spills.
