Local News

Oil Tanker in Gulf of Mexico Bursts Into Flames Over Weekend

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Tony Maples Photography

 

On Saturday, September 24, Mexican oil company Pemex experienced a disaster on their oil tanker out in the Gulf of Mexico near the coast of Veracruz along Boca del Rio. A terrifying fire began, and the crew of 31 had to be evacuated to escape the encompassing flames that created huge clouds of black smoke.

Though they’re unsure as to what caused the fire, the oil tanker called “Burgos” held gallons of diesel and Magna gasoline. It took the whole day to get the flames to calm with so much fuel for the fire on board.

This incident could continue to hurt Pemex’s reputation, which has been declining recently. According to Reuters, “The fire follows a series of other mishaps at Pemex, which is coping with major losses, increased competition at home, sharp budget cuts, and lower revenue due to the oil price rout.”

To give us a closer look at the state of the oil tanker, some Instagram users have uploaded video of raging flames. It’s a bizarre sight to see a ship spray water over flames and smoke billowing out from the Gulf of Mexico waters. Once you recognize the scale of the fire, it’s easy to see why the flames weren’t extinguished for many hours.

Tug a day nr. 16 Video of tanker fire ?. Extinguished successfully #burgos #pemex #firefighter #fire #rebocador #tuglife #tug_lovers

A video posted by Tugs around the world (@world_of_tugs) on

#Sumario7 INCENDIO DEL BUQUE TANQUE "BURGOS" FRENTE A LAS COSTAS DE BOCA DEL RÍO, VERACRUZ Boca del Río, Ver.- Equipos contraincendio de PEMEX trabajan junto con la Secretaría de Marina, personal de la API Veracruz y otras instancias federales y estatales para sofocar el incendio que inició a las 11:40 del día de ayer sábado, en el buque Burgos que transportaba diesel y gasolina Magna, el cual se encuentra en la zona de fondeo frente a las costas de Boca del Río, Veracruz. Las 31 personas a bordo del buque Burgos están a salvo ya en puerto, sin que haya habido lesionados y están siendo atendidos por personal médico de la compañía. Hasta el momento se desconocen las causas que generaron el incendio en la embarcación. Se informa a la población que no existen riesgos a su seguridad ni a la de las instalaciones cercanas. www.sumario7.com.mx #BocaDelRío #Veracruz #México #Sumario7 #press #prensa #Medios #Periodismo #Periódicos #PEMEX #instapict #instaphoto #instamoment #photography #photo #photos #fotografia #foto #fotos

A video posted by Sumario 7 (@sumario7) on