An undersea pipeline operated by Pemex, a Mexican oil company, ruptured in the Gulf of Mexico. This set the surface of the water on fire. It took officials five hours to extinguish the fire.
The incident occurred in the submarine pipeline near its Ku-Maloob-Zaap’s Ku-C satellite platform in the Campeche Sound. This is the largest crude oil producer for Pemex. Ku Maloob Zaap produces around 1.7 million barrels of crude oil per day.
The cause of the rupture and subsequent fire is currently under investigation. A Pemex incident report said “The turbomachinery of Ku Maloob Zaap’s active production facilities were affected by an electrical storm and heavy rains”. Angel Carrizales, The head of Mexico’s oil safety regulator ASEA, said the incident “did not generate any spill”. He did not discuss what was being burned on the ocean’s surface.
This is not the first incident for Pemex. Thirty people were killed in 2012 during a natural gas explosion at one of the plants. In 2013, 37 people were killed when a gas explosion blew up the company’s headquarters.
‘Ocean on fire’: Flames erupt in Gulf of Mexico after gas pipeline ruptures