Firefighters try to extinguish the fire resulting from the Jesse, Nigeria pipeline explosion. Credit: APOn October 17, 1998, a high pressure surface pipeline carrying gasoline from the Warri Refinery in Southern Nigeria to Kaduna in North Nigeria ruptured and exploded, killing 1,078 people in Jesse, Nigeria, in one of the deadliest energy-related accidents in history. The pipeline was owned and operated by the state owned Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).

Late the evening of October 16, farmers near Jesse and Atiegwo, Nigeria, noticed a leak at the 16-inch pipeline and quickly notified other villagers, who traveled to the leak site to scavenge for fuel. Hundreds of people arrived in Jesse as rumors spread that a huge pool of gasoline -- which had spilled from the pipeline into a concrete well -- was available for the taking. This activity, known as "bunkering" or "spooning," is common in poverty-stricken areas of Nigeria where people sell the gasoline on the black market. Sometime early in the morning, before maintenance crews from NNPC could arrive, the pipeline exploded, devastating 12km² of land, completely burning several villages.

Many of the corpses, including those of some children, were found clutching plastic cups, funnels and cans to collect the fuel. The charred body of one woman was found with her dead baby strapped to her back. Many other victims were farmers and villagers sleeping in their homes.

Sources

• Sovacool, Benjamin K., The costs of failure: A preliminary assessment accidents, 1907–2007, Energy Policy 36 (2008) 1802–1820.
• CNN, Nigeria digs mass grave for pipeline victims, October 19, 1998, Web posted at: 9:59 p.m. EDT (0159 GMT), Accessed 29 August 2008.