​The Ogun State Government has assured residents that the situation arising from an unusual gaseous odour in the Ijebu axis is fully under control, following an emergency on Wednesday, October 21, 2026, that left over 100 secondary school students hospitalised.
​Panic spread across parts of Ijebu-Ode, Ago-Iwoye, and Ijebu-Igbo around 10:00 AM on Wednesday when students and staff began inhaling a pungent, offensive odor that triggered acute respiratory distress, stomach disorders, and drowsiness. Several students collapsed on school grounds, with the worst-affected institutions including Anglican Girls Grammar School in Ijebu-Ode and Ijebu-Igbo Girls Grammar School.
​As the situation deteriorated, schools in Ago-Iwoye suspended classes by 11:00 AM, allowing anxious parents to evacuate their children. More than 100 affected students were rushed to medical facilities, primarily the General Hospitals in Ijebu-Ode and Ijebu-Igbo, where medical personnel administered emergency treatment, including oxygen therapy for severe cases.
​Reassuring the public, the Special Adviser to the Governor on Media and Strategy, Kayode Akinmade, announced on Wednesday afternoon that state health and environmental agencies were actively managing the response.
​Providing technical details on the cause, the Ogun State Commissioner for Environment, Hon. Ola Oresanya, explained that preliminary environmental assessments linked Wednesday’s release to a pattern of underground emissions intermittent in the Ijebu-Ode region since April 2026.
Oresanya clarified that state investigations have ruled out industrial gas pipeline leaks or acts of sabotage, attributing the recurring phenomenon to natural geological activity along localised tectonic fault lines.
He emphasized that the gas release is non-fatal and assured parents that all admitted students were expected to make a full recovery shortly after receiving care.
​Echoing these findings, the General Manager of the Ogun State Environmental Protection Agency (OGSEPA), Kehinde Bello, confirmed that emergency responders are conducting field investigations to monitor air quality levels.
Bello advised residents exposed to the fumes to cover their noses and mouths with wet handkerchiefs or damp towels rather than standard dry nose masks, as moisture provides better filtration against the natural gas emissions while technical teams finalise containment measures.
