The oil spill, which occurred at Bukuma on the New Calabar River in Rivers State about two weeks ago, has spread to the neighbourhoods of Ido, Tombia and other communities through the river in Degema and Asari Toru Local Government Areas of Rivers State.
The fire that followed the spill to surrounding farmlands and settlements on Iwoama Bukuma has however been put out. But that was after it had destroyed several hundreds of hectares of farmlands, fishing settlements and vegetation. The effects of the fire and spill are heavy on the communities where they have caused respiratory issues.
Farmers have been hurriedly harvesting their cassava and other crops that were soaked by the spill.
Meanwhile, the fire from the wellhead has continued to rage as both the owners of the wellhead and other emergency agencies watch helplessly from a safe distance.
A deployment of soldiers from the Nigerian Army and gunboats is now station in the area. Also present are personnel of Tantita Security Company, who have been deployed there to check vandalism of the facilities.
Locals told National Point that the wellhead was hit by bullets fired by a military helicopter that attempted to scare illegal oil bunkerers from the wellhead.
Awolayeofori Harry, an environmentalist and indigenes of the area lamented the plight that people of the communities caught by the disaster were going through. He said the military in the area have barred people from going into the area to do assess the level of devastation. But he said the people were going through a lot of frustration.
The Deputy National President of the National Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture, NACCIMA Dr. Emi Membere-Otaji, who saw the blowout on the river, called for urgent steps to be taken to contain the spill and block the blowout.
Membere-Otaji said he was a boat ride on the river when he came across the blowout.
He said, “Irrespective of what or who caused this oil spill the responsibility to immediately contain and clean up the oil spill squarely rests on the owners of the oil facility.
“Despite the immediate loss of income to the fishermen and the loss of marine life we all need to protect and sustain the environment for now and for the generations yet unborn.”
One of the locals, Iwarie Innocent, confirmed to National Point that some supplies of foodstuff and toiletries were brought to the community on Tuesday. “But they were not enough to ameliorate the sufferings that we are facing,” he said.
Officials of the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency, NOSDRA, told National Point that only the headquarters in Abuja could take inquiries from the press.
At the South South Zonal Office of the National Emergency Management Agency, NEMA, in Port Harcourt, National Point confirmed that the community had written to the agency to come to their aid and the agency was still making arrangements for requisitions and logistics to visit the affected areas.
By Emmanuel Obe and Clifford Christopher Solomon
