• Group demands probe into incident

With another gas-related explosion recorded in Bille, an island community in Degema Local Government Area of Rivers State, Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (CAPPA) has warned that the situation could trigger a major disaster if urgent government action is not taken.

The explosion occurred at about 8:00 a.m. on Thursday, September 3, 2026, at No. 18, Opu Ibiila Community, Bille, barely two weeks after CAPPA released a documentary and report warning about widespread gas bubbling and seepage in the community.

The blast reportedly set part of a residential building ablaze, shattered its windows and severely burned the occupant identified as Joy Amos.

CAPPA, in a statement on Saturday, said Amos sustained extensive burns and requires urgent specialist medical attention. It called on the Rivers State Government to ensure that she receives immediate treatment and that all medical and rehabilitation costs arising from the incident are covered.

According to the organisation, Amos said she had frequently heard bubbling sounds from beneath the floor of her apartment at night.
Recounting the incident, she said she was lying on her bed and using her phone when she suddenly heard a loud sound, after which the windows shattered, and fire surrounded her.

She said she managed to escape the room with her phone and power bank before dropping them near the bathroom and running outside to call for help.

The Vice President of the Bille Kingdom Youth Federation, Timothy Agunbiade, who arrived at the scene shortly afterwards, corroborated her account.

Agunbiade said Amos’s phone, power bank and gas cylinder were unaffected, while the force of the explosion appeared to have travelled from inside the room outwards.

He added that Amos had told him she regularly heard bubbling sounds in her room at night and had complained to one or two people, although she had not informed her landlady.

Meanwhile, Spaces for Change (S4C) has called for an independent investigation into the Bille explosion, amid reports of persistent gas leakage and seepage in the community.

In a statement issued at the weekend, Executive Director of Spaces for Change, Victoria Ibezim-Ohaeri, said an incident report reviewed by the organisation indicated that the explosion occurred inside a residential room where the woman was reportedly the only occupant.

According to the group, while the actual cause of the explosion must be established through competent technical investigation, the incident should be examined against longstanding complaints by residents about gas odours, gas bubbling through waterways and the presence of gas around residential and other community spaces.

The organisation warned that if confirmed, such conditions could pose significant fire and explosion risks, contaminating drinking-water sources, putting public health, fisheries and livelihoods in the predominantly fishing community at risk.