Several students of Our Lady of Apostles Secondary School, Ijebu-Ode, in Ogun State were hospitalised on Wednesday after yet another suspected gas leak engulfed the school environment, marking the third such incident in the community within two months.
The latest incident reportedly occurred during school hours when a strong, unpleasant odour spread across the school premises, leaving students and teachers gasping for air and experiencing breathing difficulties.
Panic quickly spread as the situation worsened, forcing school authorities to evacuate affected students.
Although the exact number of students impacted had not been officially confirmed at the time of filing this report, multiple victims were said to have been rushed to the General Hospital, Ijebu-Ode, where they are currently receiving medical attention.
The recurring nature of the incident has heightened concern among residents and education stakeholders, especially as similar occurrences were recorded in the same area earlier in the year.
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Confirming the development, the Ogun State Commissioner for Environment, Ola Oresanya, said the state government had begun investigations to determine the source of the latest emission.
“Yes, it’s true. It happened yesterday,” he said. “We are working to find the cause of the leakage. We will soon issue an official statement on it.”
Wednesday’s incident follows a similar emergency on April 1, when at least 30 students of the same school were hospitalised after a suspected gas leak caused widespread respiratory distress.
At the time, students and staff reportedly experienced difficulty breathing after fumes believed to have originated from nearby carbide cylinders spread across the school environment, triggering panic and mass evacuation.
During an earlier inspection of the area, Oresanya had suggested that the emissions may have originated from a nearby bush, although the exact source was not conclusively identified.
Tension also gripped the community on May 15 following another air pollution scare at Anglican Girls Grammar School in Ijebu-Ode, where students reportedly fainted after exposure to suspected toxic fumes. Victims were also taken to the General Hospital for treatment.
In response to the repeated incidents, the state government activated a multi-agency environmental and public health assessment team comprising environmental regulators, emergency responders and air quality experts to investigate the situation.
According to Oresanya, the team has been mandated to identify the source of the emissions, assess the spatial spread and level of exposure risk, and evaluate the presence of potentially harmful gases such as hydrogen sulphide (H₂S), volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and other atmospheric pollutants.
As investigations continue, residents and parents have expressed growing concern over the safety of students in the affected communities, calling for urgent and decisive action to prevent further occurrences.