ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — A Nigerian official says as many as 100 people may have died in an explosion at an oil refinery in southeastern Nigeria.
A manhunt Sunday is on for two suspects whom authorities said run the refinery. Goodluck Opiah, Nigeria's commissioner for petroleum resources, gave the estimate and said many victims died of severe burns.
Although Nigeria is Africa’s largest producer of crude oil, the country's oil production capacity has for many years been limited by a chronic challenge of illegal refineries. In the aftermath of the explosion Friday night in Imo state, the a petroleum official said the Nigerian government and the military will step up actions to minimize criminal activities in the oil industry.
