Shell mobilises Response Team to spill site, stops further spread

The Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) has confirmed oil spill from its facility at Agbura-Otuokpoti area of Yenagoa, the state capital.
The company’s Media Relations Manager, Bamidele Odugbesan, confirmed the incident in Yenagoa on Friday.
Odugbesan said the company got a report of the spill on March 31.
“About 8.30am on March 31, a community surveillance vendor reported a leak on the company’s Joint Venture pipeline at Nun River in Bayelsa.
“Following the development, the facility was shut down and full isolation established at 09.45am.
“The SPDC Oil Spill Response Team was mobilised to the spill site and was able to contain the spill to prevent further spread.
“The Joint Investigation Visit team led by government regulator will determine the cause and impact of the spill,” Odugbesan said.
He, however, said that there was an anonymous note found at the spill site, suggesting sabotage.
Some residents were seen scooping oil from water surface into drums.
Daniel Ebitimi, who claimed that crude oil has curative effect on burns and skin diseases, said he collected some kegs, which he hoped to sell.
The predominantly fishing and farming settlements regretted that the leakage discharged large volumes of crude oil into the River, resulting in pollution of the waters.
Mr Collins Jackson, an environmentalist, said the spill was discovered in the early hours of Wednesday, when the people noticed large volumes of crude floating on the river.
He said the allegations of sabotage had led to a disagreement among the regulators, communities and state government officials on the joint investigation,” he said.
Chief Don-Evarada Abednego described the spill as “life threatening”, considering that the community lacked basic amenities, such as healthcare facility and portable water.
He, therefore, urged SPDC to urgently provide emergency relief to the people, saying that drinking water from the river posed serious danger to the people’s health.