Okrika Jetty Deaths: Nnimmo Bassey Warns of Deepening Environmental Crisis in Niger Delta

By Wakirike Herald

The grief following the reported deaths at Okari Jetty in Okrika has opened a much larger conversation about the environmental dangers confronting communities across the Niger Delta.

Environmental activist and President of the Health of Mother Earth Foundation (HOMEF), Nnimmo Bassey, has warned that the tragedy should not be viewed only through the lens of illegal oil theft.

He described it as another warning sign of a deeper environmental and public health crisis affecting communities that have lived for decades alongside pipelines, oil facilities and polluted waterways.

At least 37 people were reportedly killed at Okari Jetty in the early hours of Thursday after allegedly inhaling toxic fumes while attempting to siphon petroleum products from an illegally tapped pipeline.

Several others were reportedly missing.

The Rivers State Police Command has confirmed the incident but has not announced an official death toll, saying investigations are ongoing. Some reports have also suggested that the number of fatalities could be higher.

A Community Left Searching for Answers

According to Bassey, the victims were reportedly attempting to collect a petroleum product locally called “Indorama fuel” from a pipeline operated by Indorama Eleme Petrochemical Company.

But the environmental activist stressed that the exact cause of death must be established through an independent investigation.

He said the victims may have died from inhaling noxious gases released under pressure, asphyxiation or drowning after losing consciousness and falling into the river.

The Youths and Environmental Advocacy Centre (YEAC-Nigeria) reportedly said more than 100 people had arrived in boats to collect petroleum products from an illegally tapped point.

Some allegedly collapsed after being overcome by fumes, while others reportedly fell into the river.

Whatever the final findings show, the human consequences are already devastating.

Families have lost loved ones. Communities are mourning. And questions remain about how such a dangerous situation was allowed to develop.

‘The Dead Will Become Statistics’

Bassey warned against allowing the Okrika deaths to become another forgotten chapter in the Niger Delta’s long history of environmental disasters.

“Then silence. And the dead will become dead statistics,” he warned.

The statement reflects a broader frustration among environmental campaigners who say communities continue to bear the consequences of oil-related pollution while responses often come only after disaster has struck.

For many residents of the region, the environment is not simply where they live.

It is where they fish, farm, travel, trade and raise their children.

When waterways become contaminated or dangerous, the damage reaches directly into household incomes and everyday life.

Bille’s Gas Emergency Raises Another Alarm

Bassey also pointed to the continuing environmental emergency in Bille, where residents have reportedly observed methane and other gases bubbling from rivers, swamps and wells.

The phenomenon was first reportedly noticed in October 2025, accompanied by a sulphurous smell, before being observed in other parts of the community.

A later assessment by NOSDRA reportedly detected methane, volatile organic compounds and hydrogen sulphide in ambient air around affected areas.

Methane levels were also reportedly high enough to pose serious fire and explosion risks.

Bassey criticised what he described as an insufficient response, arguing that relief materials, fire extinguishers and a fire truck could not adequately address the wider danger.

He further said residents, particularly children and elderly people, had experienced health problems which he believed could be linked to the continuing gas emissions.

Beyond Illegal Oil Theft

For Bassey, the central issue is bigger than the question of who was siphoning petroleum products at Okari Jetty.

It is about the condition of the communities living around Nigeria’s petroleum infrastructure—and whether enough is being done to protect them.

He called for urgent action to clean up the Niger Delta, replace deteriorating facilities, secure pipelines and address the environmental consequences of decades of petroleum extraction.

“How many more tragedies before we know it is time to clean up the Niger Delta, quench the roaring flames, dismantle and remove decrepit facilities and secure all pipelines by replacing and burying them in the ground?” he asked.

His conclusion was blunt:

“Our lives are worth more than crude oil.”

For Okrika and other communities across the Niger Delta, the deaths at Okari Jetty are now more than a painful headline.

They are a reminder that behind every environmental emergency are people—and families who must live with the consequences long after the headlines disappear.

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Wakirike Herald

The Voice of Wakirike People Everywhere.