Explosion at oil refinery in Nigeria kills more than 100 people

More than 100 people were killed when a fire engulfed an illegal crude oil refinery in Rivers state – Photo: DAILYPOST.NG

“The fire broke out at an illegal oil storage facility. There are more than 100 victims, some of which are unrecognizable,” said Goodluck Opiah, Rivers state official in charge of oil resources. said.

The Youth and Environmental Advocacy Center (YEAC) said that a number of vehicles queuing to buy illegal fuel were also burned in the explosion on the night of April 22 (local time).

Unemployment and poverty in Nigeria have made illegal crude oil refining an attractive business, but with deadly consequences. Underground refineries often draw crude oil from major oil companies’ pipelines and use temporary storage tanks to produce fuel.

This dangerous process has resulted in many fatal accidents and polluted areas already ravaged by oil spills.

Last October, at least 25 people, including children, were killed in an explosion and fire at another illegal oil refinery in Rivers state.

In February, local authorities said they had begun to take strong action to prevent illegal oil refining, but so far there has been no visible effect.

Government officials estimate that Nigeria, Africa’s largest oil producer and exporter, loses an average of 200,000 barrels of oil a day (more than 10% of its output) because of the theft of crude oil or pipelines. damaged.