Agip Oil Spill Hits Bayelsa Shoreline

Crude oil discharged into the Atlantic Ocean from the Agip’s export terminal has hit the Bayelsa shoreline.
The spill, which occurred last Thursday, spread to the coastline on Saturday.
Residents of Odioama, a coastal community along the Atlantic shoreline, fishermen and members of the community noticed the spill on Friday in the high seas.
According to the residents, tidal currents eventually conveyed the oil deposits to the coastline where it littered the shoreline.
Chairman of Odioama Council of Chiefs, Chief Francis Ikagi said yesterday that the thick coating of crude, which covered the waters, had spread into Odioama creeks and St Nicholas River in Brass Council Area of Bayelsa.
“On November 29, 2013, when I was returning home from Yenagoa to my community through Nembe route, I saw a very thick layer of crude oil on the river. ”That was from a distance of about 35 minutes by speedboat. I started noticing the signs of crude oil on the water from that far up to the Odioama Creek. “The thickness was too much, even water spraying up from the speedboat engine was very black in colour as a result of the crude oil on the water,” Ikagi said.
According to the community leader, officials of Nigerian Agip Oil Company (NAOC) have been making frantic efforts to contain the spill.
“They have deployed aircraft, boats, vessels and personnel as well as materials to the spill site, which is an indication that the spill is a major one. “We have communicated to them in writing on the extent of the impact on our communities but we still await a response from them,” he said.
Officials of National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA) have commenced a probe into the incident and had dispatched its oil spill response vessel to the site.
All efforts to obtain comments from Agip were unsuccessful as Mr Tajudeen Adigun, the spokesman for the oil firm, neither took calls nor responded to a text message sent to his mobile phone.