Joy Amos was a 28-year-old resident whose life was tragically taken away by an uncontained room explosion which is suspected to be linked to the continuous methane gas leaks in Bille Kingdom, Rivers State, Amnesty International said today, mourning her passing in Port Harcourt, Nigeria, on 22 September 2026.
Joy’s tragic death demonstrates the endless danger oil and gas pollution poses to lives of people in the Niger Delta region, where local residents continue to pay the price of extraction with their lives. On 3 July 2026, Joy was resting on her bed at No. 18, Opu Ibiila Community, when an explosion tore through her room following a loud gas emission sounds, shattering windows and surrounding her with flames. Despite suffering severe burns across her body, she managed to escape and received emergency care at a private clinic in Bille for nine days, where her condition had initially shown signs of improvement.
“Amnesty International investigations show that the room occupied by Joy Amos had exhibited an apparent gas-bubbling sound beneath the cemented floor accompanied by a noticeable gas-like odor long before the incident, a hazard that persisted even after the explosion,” said Isa Sanusi Executive Director Amnesty International Nigeria.
During a field assessment mission to Bille community on 27 June 2026 to investigate escalating emissions and gas flaring, detailed further in Amnesty International’s Nigeria: Lifting the Lid report, Amnesty International directly documented multiple spots emitting gas across the community, including inside residential bedrooms, family compounds, school premises, and public neighbourhoods. The cause of the gas leaks is not known, but they are suspected to be linked to the decommissioned oil and gas wells near to Bille. Despite these documented warnings and visible hazards, no technical intervention or containment measures were deployed by authorities or oil operators to secure the area. The Government has not prioritized this issue since October 2025 when the gas leaks were first discovered.
On 12 September, Joy was transferred to Port Harcourt. Ten days later, on 22 September 2026, community members received the heartbreaking news of her passing from severe burn complications, and her body was returned to her family’s home in Kor community in Ogoni for burial.
Joy’s death comes amid a wider, uncontained environmental emergency in Bille community that continues to endanger residents lives daily. Multiple safety incidents have been recorded in recent weeks, including the collapse of a lady on 12 September due to gas-induced dizziness..
Isa Sanusi, Executive Director of Amnesty International Nigeria
“Joy’s death comes amid a wider, uncontained environmental emergency in Bille community that continues to endanger residents lives daily. Multiple safety incidents have been recorded in recent weeks, including the collapse of a lady on 12 September due to gas-induced dizziness, the sudden collapse of a school teacher on 22 September while performing her duties, and multiple domestic fire outbreaks caused by localized gas seepage, said Isa Sanusi
Amnesty International calls on the Nigerian government to urgently launch a full, independent investigation into the circumstances surrounding the death of Joy Amos and immediately deploy technical teams to identify and seal the sources of the gas emissions in the community. See the latest Amnesty International Urgent Action on behalf of the residents of Bille.
While Amnesty International, at this stage, does not claim that the gas exposure definitively caused her death, the circumstances demand a transparent and independent medical investigation.