Fresh panic swept through parts of Ijebu-Ode, Ogun State, on Friday after a suspected toxic gas emission reportedly affected more than 90 students across several secondary schools, forcing many to flee classrooms while others collapsed in distress.
The incident, which occurred at Anglican Girls’ Grammar School and neighbouring schools in the ancient town, has heightened fears among parents and residents, coming barely one month after a similar chemical odour outbreak disrupted academic activities in the area.
Witnesses said the strange odour spread rapidly through sections of the town, including Epe Garage and Obalende, triggering confusion and anxiety among residents.
Several affected students were evacuated to the State General Hospital in Ijebu-Ode, where medical personnel battled to stabilise victims said to be suffering from abdominal pain, dizziness, nausea and respiratory discomfort.
Among the schools reportedly affected are Anglican Girls’ Grammar School, Our Lady of Apostles Girls’ School, Ijebu-Ode Grammar School and Sambadola Private School.
As a result, anxious parents and guardians thronged the State General Hospital in search of their children and wards.
The development has intensified concerns over environmental safety and air quality monitoring in Ijebu-Ode following repeated reports of suspected chemical emissions within the town this year.
Efforts to obtain comments from the Ogun State Commissioner for Environment, Ola Oresanya, were unsuccessful as he did not respond to calls made to his mobile phone.
However, the Ogun State Commissioner for Education, Abayomi Arigbabu, later visited the State Hospital and appealed to parents to remain calm while medical personnel attended to the affected students.
According to him, both federal and state environmental agencies have been contacted for urgent intervention and investigation into the incident.
Speaking on the development, the General Manager of the Ogun State Environmental Protection Agency, Kehinde Bello, disclosed that air quality monitoring devices installed within Ijebu-Ode detected elevated methane concentrations in parts of the town.
Bello revealed that methane levels in some locations reportedly rose to about 13,500 parts per million, raising fresh concerns over possible environmental and public health risks in the affected communities.
