Residents of Port Harcourt, Rivers State, have cried out following the increase in the black soot that has literally engulfed the city.
Helpless, the residents are inhaling the polluted air at the risk of falling ill.
One of the residents, simply identified as Udauk, took to Instagram to share recent photos of the situation of the atmosphere in Port Harcourt.
Udauk said people cannot move about without wearing a mask due to polluted air.
She added that the soot is making people sick, calling on the government to intervene.
She wrote: ”Those in Port Harcourt, how do you cope with this soot? I was raised in that PH, but currently it has become unhealthy for me to stay. I can’t even travel home and stay for a week cause it affects me; I literally feel sick… This situation is killing people silent and the govt is doing nothing about it”
In another post, she wrote: “This is Port Harcourt at 9.00am today Dec-1-2021. This picture was taken at the Mile_1 Flyover looking towards Government House. Just about 2km from govt house.
“This is the situation all over Port Harcourt. It is a daily occurrence.
“The government has to do something before it gets out of hand.
“The people are dying silently.”
The black soot is believed to be a fallout of oil exploration and exploitation activities prevalent in the Niger Delta region.