Kula Boat Tragedy: Oil profits must never trump human lives, HOMEF tells oil firms, govt

Bodies of those who loss their lives in the Kula boat tragedy moved into a vehicle

The Health of Mother Earth Foundation (HOMEF) has condemned the circumstances surrounding the deaths of seven people in Kula Kingdom, Rivers State, warning that commercial interests in Nigeria’s petroleum industry must never take precedence over human lives and environmental protection.

The environmental advocacy group said the 20 October boat tragedy, which occurred during a protest over the removal of an offshore crude oil vessel, exposed the dangers of an oil-dependent economic system that prioritises resource extraction and commercial interests over the safety and livelihoods of host communities.

In a statement issued on 29 October and signed by its Media and Communications Officer, Kome Odhomor, HOMEF said the incident raised serious questions about the responsibilities of oil companies and public institutions towards communities affected by petroleum operations.

The tragedy occurred in the waterways of Kula Kingdom, in Akuku-Toru Local Government Area, when a speedboat carrying 15 people capsized during an operation involving the movement of the Anambra Basin Floating Storage and Offloading (FSO) vessel.

Eight people survived the incident, while seven died. The deaths followed tensions between community members and those involved in the operation to remove the oil vessel from the coastal waters.

The protest was reportedly triggered by unresolved community grievances, including an alleged oil spill, outstanding payments to local vendors and contractors, and what residents perceived as neglect by the operators of the facility.

HOMEF’s Executive Director, Nnimmo Bassey, said the tragedy is proof of the injustice of an extractive industry in which communities bear the environmental and human costs while commercial interests take precedence.

“The Kula tragedy exposes the cruelty of an extractive model that places commercial interests above human lives and the wellbeing of communities. No barrels of crude oil are worth a human life,” Mr Bassey said.

He argued that decades of petroleum extraction had left communities grappling with oil pollution, damaged fishing grounds, threatened food security and declining livelihoods.

Mr Bassey said the consequences were particularly severe for fishing communities such as Kula, where waterways and aquatic resources sustain livelihoods and underpin community life.

He said environmental justice should go beyond compensation after pollution has occurred to include preventing environmental damage, restoring affected ecosystems and respecting the rights of communities.

“Companies and public institutions must recognise their responsibilities to the people and ecosystems affected by extractive activities,” he added.

The Kula incident has also raised questions about the circumstances surrounding the operation that preceded the boat capsize.

As previously reported, community members had opposed the removal of the Anambra Basin FSO vessel in the face of unresolved grievances over alleged pollution and other outstanding obligations.

Max Shipping Services Limited, an Ibeto Group subsidiary which owns the vessel, expressed sadness over the incident but denied responsibility. The company said its involvement was limited to owning and retrieving the vessel, which it had hired to Menal Technical Services Limited for crude oil evacuation.

The police in Rivers State said they had commenced an investigation to determine the circumstances surrounding the incident.

The seven deaths were confirmed after search and rescue teams recovered the bodies of the two remaining victims, following the earlier recovery of five bodies.

HOMEF said the tragedy illustrated how the pursuit of natural resources, without adequate regard for community welfare, could deepen grievances, insecurity and preventable human suffering.

It rejected the treatment of oil-producing communities as sacrifice zones for commercial interests, insisting that residents of resource-rich areas should not be regarded as obstacles to petroleum operations.

The organisation called for a shift away from what it described as extractivism towards a development model that prioritises ecological wellbeing, human dignity and community livelihoods.

It called on the government and oil industry operators to prevent pollution, rehabilitate degraded ecosystems, protect fishing grounds and ensure that host communities participate meaningfully in decisions affecting their lands and waterways.

It also called for effective safeguards to protect communities and ensure that residents can express environmental concerns and defend their livelihoods without being exposed to violence or preventable danger.

HOMEF expressed solidarity with the bereaved families, survivors and people of Kula Kingdom, warning that the deaths must not become another statistic in the history of suffering associated with petroleum extraction in the Niger Delta.

“The lost lives represent families, relationships, aspirations and futures cut short,” the organisation said.

It urged Nigeria to confront the inequalities associated with petroleum extraction, arguing that development cannot be built on the destruction of communities and their environment.

“No profit is worth a human life. No resource is more valuable than the people and ecosystems that sustain life,” HOMEF said.