For the third time in two months, a suspected gas leak at Our Lady of Apostle Secondary School in Ijebu Ode, Ogun State, has left several students and staff hospitalised.
A resident who spoke anonymously said the latest incident occurred during school hours when students and staff suddenly noticed a strong, offensive smell, which quickly led to breathing difficulties, discomfort and fainting among some victims.
“Some of the affected students and staff members were subsequently taken to the General Hospital, Ijebu-Ode, where they received medical attention. Some of the students were still on admission. The general complain is discomfort, weakness, some of them even fainted,” the resident said.
“The government has to get to the root of this terrible incident. This is the third time in two months that we shall be experiencing this hazardous gas leak, the government should please do something before it is too late,” he added.
The Ogun State Commissioner for Environment, Ola Oresanya, confirmed the incident, saying the government is aware and is actively responding to the situation. “Yes I am aware of this gas leak incident and we have detected the source through our installed monitoring devices. The gas leakage is coming from behind Our Lady of Apostle School, Ijebu Ode,” he said.
Oresanya also said a multi-agency environmental and public health assessment team has been activated, involving environmental regulators, emergency responders and air quality experts to investigate the cause and impact of the emissions.
According to him, the team will determine “the source of the emissions, assess spatial extent and exposure risk, and evaluate associated gases such as hydrogen sulphide (H₂S), volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and other relevant atmospheric parameters”.
This latest incident follows earlier occurrences in April and May, when dozens of students were hospitalised after similar suspected gas leak events in the same area, raising concerns among residents about recurring environmental hazards around the school.