Okrika Deaths: Bassey Warns of Toxic Environmental Crisis in Niger Delta

The reported deaths of at least 37 people at a jetty in Okrika, Rivers State, have exposed what environmental activist Nnimmo Bassey called a deepening public health and environmental crisis across the Niger Delta.

The victims reportedly inhaled toxic fumes in the early hours of Thursday while trying to siphon petroleum products from an illegally tapped pipeline. Several others were reportedly missing. The Rivers State Police Command confirmed the incident, but it has not issued an official death toll and said investigations were continuing. Other reports put the possible number of fatalities above 37.

Bassey, president of the Health of Mother Earth Foundation, said the victims were reportedly collecting a product locally known as “Indorama fuel” from a pipeline operated by Indorama Eleme Petrochemical Company. He said an independent investigation should establish what happened, including whether the victims died from noxious gases released under pressure, asphyxiation, or drowning after losing consciousness and falling into the river.

The Youths and Environmental Advocacy Centre said more than 100 people had reportedly arrived by boat to collect petroleum products from the illegally tapped point. Some reportedly collapsed after exposure to fumes, while others fell into the river. Bassey warned that the tragedy must not become another entry in the Niger Delta’s long record of environmental disasters. “Then silence. And the dead will become dead statistics,” he said, arguing that silence over environmental degradation was itself part of the problem.

He also pointed to a continuing gas emergency in Bille, another Rivers State community. Residents reportedly began seeing bubbles in water, accompanied by a sulphurous smell, in October 2025. The phenomenon later spread to other parts of the community. A reported assessment by the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency detected methane, volatile organic compounds and hydrogen sulphide in ambient air, while methane concentrations reportedly reached levels posing significant fire and explosion risks. Bassey criticised what he described as inadequate government responses to the wider environmental threats.

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Then silence. And the dead will become dead statistics