The Abia State Government has commenced discussions with relevant federal agencies and stakeholders in the petroleum industry to address the environmental and socio-economic impact of the recent pipeline explosion in Owaza, Ukwa West Local Government Area, and to prevent similar incidents in the future.
The Commissioner for Information, Prince Okey Kanu, disclosed this on Monday while responding to questions during a press briefing on the outcome of this week’s State Executive Council meeting chaired by Governor Alex Otti.
Prince Kanu said the government was pursuing immediate remediation measures in the affected area while engaging operators and regulatory authorities on long-term interventions aimed at improving infrastructure integrity and public safety.
He noted that the Commissioners for Petroleum and Environment had undertaken an on-the-spot assessment of the affected community and coordinated the distribution of relief materials to families impacted by the explosion.
According to him, preliminary information available to the government suggests that deteriorating infrastructure may have played a role in the incident, and highlofhted the need for the replacement and upgrade of ageing pipeline facilities.
“The Commissioner for Petroleum was there last week together with the Commissioner for Environment, who happens to come from that community. They visited the place and assessed the extent of the damage.
“Some relief has been brought to the families affected. But most importantly, they are in touch with the federal authorities and all the relevant stakeholders in the oil industry on whatever they may need to do in terms of ensuring that this does not reoccur.
“Because we have got information that what happened may have been as a result of some old equipment that has been installed there for a long time.
“So, maybe a solution would be for them to come down and ensure that new pipelines and bolts and nuts are fixed there”, he said.
The commissioner assured residents of the State government’s commitment to restoring normalcy in the affected communities and stated that no fatalities were recorded in the explosion.
