In this interview with Emmanuel Obe, Chief Chinedu John, one of the leaders of Adanta village, where the pipeline fire occurred said even though Shell, the owners of the pipeline had not approached them, the community may not ask for compensation for the fire that burned from on May 31 to June 3, 2023 on the Ogbodo/Adanta section of the Trans Niger Pipeline
What actually happened on May 31 along the pipeline?
I actually went to Isiokpo to get something and my wife called me to say that there was a fire incident. But before that time, somebody told me that some boys had gone to the pipeline to break the pipe and people were going there to fetch crude oil.
How did the fire then come about?
But after about three hours in the evening, that particular day, I was there my wife called me. From the roundabout we were seeing the flame, heavy one and thick. So, everybody around here was running away. If you look around here, we are the ones closer to that place. So, we now ran; all our women and children. We all ran because we had been hearing about this kind of incident and how it could spread and do damage.
So, I ran down and saw my wife, children, everywhere. I immediately called the councillor. He said he was already there that I should come. So, I immediately met with him there and I said call the youth chairman, the community youth chairman. He was trying to call the DPO (divisional police nofficer) and the council chairman.
I personally called our youth chairman. He said he had been there, that I was not there, that he had seen it but it’s like Shell Petroleum Development Company would shut the line. I said, “do quick that the fire is here, it’s coming towards this place”. Though it was a little bit far but it had not crossed the water.
The councillor called the DPO. The DPO called the DCO (Divisional Crime Officer). We were there with the councillor and the DPO came. We met there. The councillor was briefing the DPO. Then, the councillor was still on calling the local government chairman. At the end of the day, we now got information that Shell had gone to switch off the line so that it would not further spread.
But the flame was still too much. We were calling Shell to come that night. But they didn’t come that night. They didn’t come the following day.
Were they afraid they could be mobbed by the villagers?
I don’t know. They said they had shut the line that… We asked the youth chairman. He said well it is our boys that went there to break the pipeline so, Shell might not respond. So, if the thing spreads to the community so, all of us would die. Shell would not come.
The beauty of it was that around 8, 9, 10pm we saw some boys with apron. They said they are the boys that guard pipelines, Tompolo Boys (Tantita Surveillance Company Limited owned by Government Ekpemupolo). They now came, up to seven or eight of them. So, I and the councillor went to that particular place, passed the first place where that thing was burning. We viewed it and knew it might not get into the community throughout the night. The councillor asked the Tompolo boys to place security so that at night nothing would happen.
I was there when the DPO arrived. I then left. I put a call to our chief. He didn’t pick. But the younger brother was already there. I then went back to the house. I calmed our people that they should go and sleep.
We expected Shell that night, we expected them in the morning. We expected them in the evening. They didn’t come. Up till now we didn’t hear from them again.
Aren’t they the ones that stopped the fire?
The fire was just burning. They had already told us that Shell had shut the line of supply so the severity of the fire had dropped. But it did not cross the water. It was on the third day or the fourth day that the fire stopped.
You said you haven’t heard from Shell till today?
Till today we haven’t heard from Shell.
But the spill spot had been covered. Who did it if not Shell?
They didn’t come the following day. It was about the third day or fourth day.
Haven’t they sealed the point at which the pipe was opened?
I didn’t go there again. We just left the place. But after three or four days, the fire came down.
But they have not come to excavate or remediate the place or done anything?
I didn’t ask again. You are supposed to see the Chairman and ask.
We thought that by now, the company and the community should have sat to discuss
No way! But I don’t know if they had gone to a few people to work out anything behind us.
But you are in a position to know if something has happened?
We had started a move to meet Shell. But we found out that it is our boys.
Did that weaken your resolve?
Yes.
Don’t you think the company can help in remediate the place that was damaged by fire?
It didn’t destroy farmlands. It’s just along that pipeline.
Are you people not expecting compensation or anything?
No we are not expecting anything. It’s just that the danger did not come so, we ended it there.
