Mkpoikana Udoma
Port Harcourt — Fresh fears have emerged in Bille Kingdom, Degema Local Government Area of Rivers State, after seven months of reported gas leaks culminated in a fire outbreak, prompting calls for a state of emergency and temporary relocation of residents.
The Youths and Environmental Advocacy Centre, YEAC-Nigeria, confirmed that the fire incident occurred yesterday when leaking gas bubbling from the ground in and around Opu Dah Community ignited on an abandoned mono pump head.
Recall that since October 2025, SweetCrude Reports had reported a sustained and unchecked gas emissions from a mystery facility rocking Bille Kingdom in Degema LGA of Rivers State.
Although the company operating the leaking facility remains a mystery, NUPRC Chief Executive, Mrs Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan, on March 24th 2026 had claimed she has launched an investigation into the ongoing incident, exactly five months after the multiple gas leaks became noticeable since October 25th 2025.
In April 2026, after much backlash, the Rivers State Governor Siminalayi Fubara, represented by the secretary to the state government officially visited the site of the unchecked gas emissions in Bille Kingdom, and approved a N100 million emergency intervention, to the affected community.
The prolonged pollution, which has impacted both land and waterways, has drawn concern over health risks and environmental damage in the oil-producing area, as pungent gas bubbles from multiple spots around the coastal community.
The environmental advocacy group described the incident as the materialisation of repeated warnings that “Bille is sitting on a keg of gunpowder.”
In a statement signed by its Executive Director, Dr. Fyneface Dumnamene Fyneface, YEAC-Nigeria said the fire has placed lives, property and the environment under immediate threat.
“Unfortunately, that warning has now materialized as the ‘keg of gunpowder’ has caught fire, putting lives, property, and the environment at immediate risk,” the group stated.
YEAC-Nigeria demanded that the Federal Government urgently declare a state of emergency in Bille Kingdom to enable immediate intervention and suspension of bureaucratic bottlenecks delaying action on the crisis.
“The scale and duration of the gas leaks require urgent executive action to protect residents and prevent possible loss of life,” the statement said.
The organisation also called for the temporary relocation of residents from gas-polluted areas to prevent further exposure to toxic hydrocarbon emissions and possible large-scale fire outbreaks.
“The people of Bille should be temporarily relocated from the gas polluted areas immediately to prevent further inhaling of gas and poisonous hydrocarbon-related chemicals, as well as possible impending larger fire incidents,” YEAC stated.
Drawing parallels with the relocation of Finima community in Bonny during the establishment of the Nigeria LNG plant in 1991, the advocacy group argued that relocating Bille residents temporarily to address the ongoing environmental emergency should not be difficult.
YEAC further urged the Nigerian Ports Authority, NPA, Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, NIMASA, and the Nigerian Navy to deploy marine fire service teams and tugboats to the area to contain possible future outbreaks.
“There is the need for government to urgently deploy and station marine fire service units and patrol tugboats in Bille Kingdom and its environs to respond to any further fire outbreaks and mitigate disaster in this riverine community,” the group added.
The organisation also called on the Federal Government, Rivers State Government, New Cross Exploration and Production Limited, and other oil firms operating in the area to immediately secure abandoned facilities and halt the gas leaks.
YEAC-Nigeria equally urged the National Emergency Management Agency, NEMA, to urgently provide relief materials to affected residents to cushion the impact of the ongoing environmental disaster.
“The ongoing disaster in Bille Kingdom requires urgent attention. NEMA should rise to the occasion and distribute relief materials to affected households,” the statement added.
The group vowed to continue monitoring developments and hold all responsible parties accountable until the safety of residents and the environment is guaranteed.
This article was originally posted at sweetcrudereports.com
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