By Enyichukwu Enemanna
Several persons have been reported dead in Rumuekpe community in Emuoha Local Government Area of Rivers State after an explosion from a crude oil tapping point in the early hours of Friday.
An eyewitness who identified himself as Ikechukwu attributed the explosion to the activities of illegal artisanal refiners operating on the trans-Niger Delta Pipeline in the area.
Unspecified number of victims were burnt beyond recognition in the raging inferno, including some women while property worth millions of Nigerian Naira were also destroyed.
The executive director of the youths and empowerment advocacy centre (YEAC-Nigeria), Fyneface Fyneface confirmed the tragedy through the Crude Oil Spill Alert System (COSAS) centre.
The incident he said happened at about 2am on Friday, when a driver kicked the ignition of one of the loaded buses carrying stolen crude oil, which unfortunately went up in flames as a result of spark from the battery.
The Rivers State Police Command, public relations officer, Grace Iringe-Koko, confirmed the incident, saying the Divisional Police Officer is already on his way to the scene.
No official statement has been released on the incident.
