Port Harcourt, capital of Rivers State, is reeling from a protest from thousands of pro-Biafra activists, a report from the area said.

The protesters, of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), stormed the Garden City early this morning, disrupting economic activities and the flow of traffic.

“I ran into them at Eleme Junction on my way to work,” a panic-stricken resident told News Express on phone minutes ago. “They were so many and overwhelmed the policemen, who had to indiscriminately fire teargas, including at commuters and passersby. I was affected by the teargas and could not continue to our office. I have returned home to take care of myself,” the lady said.

The Biafra protests had yesterday effectively grounded Aba, the commercial nerve centre of neighbouring Abia State.

The IPOB members are enraged by the continued detention of their leader, Radio Biafra Director Nnamdi Kanu, by the Department of State Security (DSS), despite reportedly meeting the tough bail conditions garnted him three weeks ago by an Abuja magistrate’s court. The protests started last Friday in Onittsha (Anambra State) and Asaba (Delta State) and have since swept past Enugu and Abia states.

•Photo shows pro-Biafra protesters.