On October 8, 2024, the Société de Gestion des Stocks Pétroliers de Côte d'Ivoire (GESTOCI) conducted a fire simulation exercise to test its Internal Operations Plan (POI). The drill, held at GESTOCI's facilities, was highly commended by Dominique Bonjour, Team Leader of Project P95, an initiative of the European Union’s Centres of Excellence for nuclear, radiological, biological, and chemical (NRBC) risk reduction.

“We intentionally made the scenario more complex to challenge the company, and GESTOCI's responsiveness met our expectations,” Bonjour stated during the exercise, which was attended by GESTOCI's Managing Director, Ibrahima Doumbia. Mr. Doumbia expressed satisfaction with the outcome, reaffirming the company's preparedness to handle potential incidents.

The simulated incident involved a major leak in the outlet line of Tank B21, causing a loud noise and a fire outbreak in the containment area of Tank B21 during an internal transfer of unleaded gasoline from Tank B21 to Tank B33. Upon receiving the alert, GESTOCI's security coordination team triggered the POI as per the company's safety protocol. The site was cordoned off, and non-essential personnel were evacuated.

After an intense 80-minute battle, GESTOCI’s internal rescue teams, supported by partners such as the Gendarmerie, Police, GSPM (Firefighters), CIAPOL (Anti-Pollution Center), SIR (Ivorian Refining Company), and the Port Authority of Abidjan, successfully contained the fire.

“Three victims were attended to and evacuated by the GSPM, but their lives are not in danger. Fortunately, the facility itself was not damaged,” reported GESTOCI spokesperson Lassina Fofana.

This exercise was organized by Expertise France in collaboration with GESTOCI and the Executive Secretariat of the National Platform for Risk Reduction and Disaster Management, further enhancing GESTOCI’s operational readiness in emergency situations.