No fewer than 10 persons lost their lives at the Kom kom axis of Oyigbo in Oyigbo Local Government Area of Rivers State when a pipeline exploded.
Community sources said the pipeline belong to Shell Petroleum Development Company, SPDC, but Shell Spokesman, Bamidele Oladosu said there was no record of any explosion on SPDC facility in Oyigbo.
A resident of the area, Jude Nwanma, said that residents of Izuoma, where the incident happened, woke up to a thunderous explosion that occurred from a pipeline that crisscrossed his resident.
Nwanma said more than 10 persons may have lost their lives in the explosion.
He said that the explosion caused pandemonium in the area just as residents scampered for safety.
“It was around 8.00am when we heard a loud explosion. Most of the residents were still in their houses when the loud explosion occurred. I woke and gathered all my family members together before we moved out of the house.”
“As we were moving out, I saw billows of smoke coming from pipeline not very far from my house. I saw many persons running out of their houses. I did not exactly know what was happening. We just heard a loud explosion which was followed with billows of smoke.”
“It was later I learnt that the explosion occurred in one of the pipeline I suspected to be fuel pipeline and that more than 10 persons lost their lives in the incident,” he said.
The Chairman of Oyigbo Local Government Area, Gerald Oforji, who confirmed the story, said that ten persons died in the explosion.
Oforji said the bodies of the victims were recovered from the scene when the fire was put off.
He said that no house was destroyed when the explosion occurred.
When contacted, Rivers State Police Command Public Relation Officer, Nnamdi Omoni confirmed the story.
He said that he was yet to be briefed on the number of casualties.
Omoni said the incident occurred when workers of a company were carrying out repair work in one of the pipelines at Kom kom in Oyigbo.
He said the State Police Command had commenced full scale investigation on the incident.
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