Mexico gas pipeline fire kills 10, injures 40 others
View of a tank containing gas at a Pemex refinery in Tula, Hidalgo state, Mexico on March 8, 2011
GUADALAJARA, Mexico – A fire at a gas pipeline distribution center in northern Mexico this morning killed at least 10 people and injured 40 others, El Universal reported.
Photos posted online showed black smoke billowing from the gas facility owned by Mexican state oil monopoly Petroleos Mexicanos, also known as Pemex, near the city of Reynosa in Tamaulipas state.
The Associated Press reported that at least 10 people had been killed. The blaze has since been extinguished and the pipeline shut off, the AP said.
The cause of the fire is not yet known, but Reuters noted that a number of blazes at Pemex facilities have been triggered by criminals illegally tapping pipelines with the intention of stealing oil products.
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