Fire Risk Evaluation for Petroleum Products Handling Facilities in Niger Delta Region, Nigeria

Abstract

This study is an evaluation of the level of fire and explosion risks in petroleum handling facilities in the Niger Delta Region, Nigeria. A descriptive cross-sectional research design was employed using Stratified & Purposive sampling techniques for data collection. A Standard checklist of 17 compliance specifications of Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) was adopted and a walk-through survey was carried out in 118 identified facilities in 3 urban locations: Eket, Port Harcourt and Warri, respectively. Inferential and descriptive statistics were analysed using XLSTAT version 17,and the level of risk calculated as the product of the likelihood of the hazard occurring and its consequence (Severity). The level of Risk was then rated on a 5x5 Risk Assessment Matrix. The result obtained revealed that 95.37% of the 118 stations sampled rated from Medium to High Risk. This calls for a great concern and urgent need for intervention. It is therefore recommended that Facility owners should demonstrate more seriousness to safety policies; provide adequate safety measures to safeguard their facilities and engage qualified Safety officers to carry out Facility specific Fire and explosion risk assessments and manage their safety concerns.