Port Harcourt residents fear for their lives as air and sky turn black

Port Harcourt residents alarm at black soot falling from the sky (photo)

- Residents of Port Harcourt, Rivers state, cried out over black particles which has taken over the air
- The soot is as a result of carbon emission from company yet to be identified
- Inhaling the soot according to a medical practitioner can cause illness such as Asthma, Pneumonia, Bronchitis and other dangerous respiratory tract infections For couple of months now, Port Harcourt has been engulfed with black soot polluting the air and putting the residents’ health in danger.
Black soot includes black particles composed by carbon produced by incomplete combustion of coals. Soot can consist of acid, chemicals, or soil and dust and the particles are extremely tiny powder form.
The recent appearance of black soot in the city of Port Harcourt, Rivers state, has become a great concern for the residents who wake up every morning to black sky and dusty air.

Dr Nkiru Onukha, an educationist also said: "Our environment has been polluted and for the fact that out environment has been polluted, your home has been
polluted."
Parents with toddlers and little children have also raised alarm over how their babies’ nostrils are blackened by the black air and they wondered what danger the kids are exposed to by inhaling the polluted
air.
A medical practitioner, Dr John Danagogo, said the inhalation of this polluted air can lead to upper respiratory tract infections such as several medical condition including cough, catarrh, asthma, bronchitis and pneumonia.

The general manager Port Harcourt refinery company blame the soot on illegal oil activities by bunkers and vandals.
When questioned about the soot in an interview by Channels TV, Rivers state commissioner of Information said: “Port Harcourt is industrializing very fast, so there is a tendency for this kind of pollution. It’s got to do with laws as well, the extractive economy is supported by federal laws, we have a state control over such an environmental issue but ultimately, how you enforce environmental impact work is up to federal law.

“The petroleum act of 1969 is still the organizing law that regulates the industry. It is (the law) 45 years old, you would have expected that the petroleum industry bill that has been in debate would have been passed into law. You know, a more contemporary understanding of how to tackle environmental issues.

“At the state level, we have a very committed response to environmental issues, we have been rethinking our own law to see how we can better enforce environmental regulations.”

The rivers state house of assembly recently mandated a committee on environment to check the activities of company operating in the city.
Meanwhile, Rivers state governor, Nyesom Wike has explained why he has not visited the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja in the last four months. Governor Wike said he stopped visiting the nation's capital due to the ‘excessive prevalence of lies’ in Abuja.

The governor made the comment while flagging-off the second phase of the reconstruction of Port Harcourt township roads recently.

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