‘Eye of fire‘ O ‘Door to hell‘. These are the qualifiers with which the spectacular fire that occurred this Saturday after breaking an underwater pipeline next to a Pemex oil platform in the Gulf of Mexico has been described.
The platform of the state-owned company Petróleos Mexicanos (Pemex) is located off the coast of Ciudad del Carmen, in the state of Campeche. The spectacular images show an impressive circle-shaped fire boiling in the waters next to the oil rig.
About 4:00 a.m. (local time), this fire has been reported 400 meters from the platform I’m Charly, the largest oil field with a production of 95,000 barrels per day, 40% of all Mexican production.
At the moment the causes that have caused the rupture of the pipe are unknown, although local media assure that they could have occurred when it was spilled fuel from a control valve of a gas pipeline that transported it between platforms, almost 80 meters deep, reports Televisa.
Immediately three boats have approached the area and have begun to launch pressurized water over the area to try to extinguish the flames. No injuries have been reported and once the fire is out, Pemex divers have descended to close the pipeline’s underwater valve to cut off the flow of crude that fueled a surprising fire over the sea.
Pemex has reported in a statement that “the incident was dealt with immediately when the security protocols were activated” with the vessels ‘Isla Santa Cruz’, ‘Bahía de Campeche’ and ‘Bourbon Alienor’ accompanying them.
The Mexican oil company has confirmed that the fire in the Gulf of Mexico has ended around 10:45, local time, and the “normal operating conditions” have been restored, while “no injuries or evacuees are reported.”
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