THE Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) has claimed that its fighters were responsible for the attack on a petroleum tanker ship that burst into flames at the Port Harcourt port yesterday.
MEND’s spokesperson, Jomo Gbomo said a group within the organisation known as Freelance Freedom Fighters (FFF), working inside the oil industry detonated a remote explosive device that caused the fire on a tanker, which berthed at the Nigeria Ports Authority (NPA) port in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital.
Residents of Port Harcourt were woken by the loud explosion that rocked several parts of the city. The vessel, ‘Golden Lucy,’ which was berthed in a general cargo area at the non oil exporting terminal, was preparing to discharge refined fuel at the port when it burst into flames following two loud explosions around 6:15 am on the waterways around the NPA premises.
The Port Manager, Rivers Port Complex, Mr. Dele Alabi told journalists that no casualty was recorded, as the crew members were all successfully rescued to safety.
But sources at the port told The Guardian that two persons were reportedly injured in the process.
Alabi explained that the vessel had earlier discharged about 7500 metric tones of petrol belonging to Segmon Nigeria Limited before the incident occurred. He blamed the inferno on marine accident from the engine room of the ship.
“It was a marine accident. Explosion was from the engine room,” he added.
Alabi explained that in a bid to control the spread of the fire, the vessel was quickly isolated from others and that both the state and oil companies’ fire services were still battling as at press time to extinguish the raging fire.
Meanwhile, MEND has contradicted the NPA’s claim that the fire was caused by a marine problem.
Gbomo said, “Freelance Freedom Fighters’ (FFF), working inside the oil industry detonated a remote explosive device that caused the fire on a tanker in Port Harcourt, Rivers State of Nigeria today, January 11, 2008.”
MEND reiterated the warning to residents inside the Niger Delta to avoid milling close to military vehicles and check points, “as we want to avoid the loss of civilian lives. The military seems to be deliberately using civilians as human shields.”
The Rivers State government only on Thursday admonished armed youths in the state to shun militancy because it has not brought the much-desired development to the area and the state in particular.
Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Mr. Magnus Abe noted that since youths in the region resorted to armed struggle, their actions have not yielded the much-desired development everyone in the state in particular craved for.
“As far as Rivers State is concerned, nothing has been the benefit of militancy. What have we gained in shooting gun? Because of criminal activities, our businesses are collapsing, companies are moving out, unemployment is rising and when we act, someone is saying we are not supporting the Niger Delta. This is not the Niger Delta that we want to support. We won’t continue to keep quiet,” he vowed.