Nigerian authorities and the oil company involved contested on Saturday a report by a local environmental organization that 37 people had died after inhaling gases during an attempt to steal fuel from a pipeline in the country's south. The Centre for the Defence of Youth and the Environment (YEAC-Nigeria) had announced the death toll on Thursday, but the security agency responsible for pipeline protection stated that it found only four bodies at the scene.
The incident occurred in the Niger Delta region, one of Nigeria's main oil-producing areas. According to YEAC-Nigeria, the victims died after inhaling fuel vapors during an operation to illegally extract oil from the pipeline. The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), responsible for pipeline security, found a significantly lower number of fatalities at the scene.
