EXPLOSION, fire rock Mexican oil refinery in Veracruz state (Video)

A fire has broken out at a Pemex oil refinery in Minatitlan, a town in the Mexican state of Veracruz.

Video from the scene shows a plume of black smoke as the facility is engulfed in flames.

No casualties have yet been reported.

Mexico’s safety, energy and environment regulator ASEA reported that the blaze started in a gasoline transfer pump.

The watchdog said that it would inspect the facility in wake of the fire to “verify security conditions.”

One photograph in particular is going viral, showing a Pemex worker scrambling to shut off a valve as a fireball explodes behind him.

Around 7:30pm local time, Pemex said the fire appeared to be under control, adding; “Fortunately, it is confirmed that there are no fatalities or serious injuries.”

 

 

The refinery boasts a capacity of up to 285,000 barrels per day.

 

The mishap at the Mexican refinery comes after a spate of fires rocked a number of oil facilities around the world in recent weeks.

 

A major blaze at an oil refinery in Indonesia’s West Java province late last month sparked a mass evacuation; leaving several people injured.

 

An attack on a Saudi oil terminal north of the Saudi-Yemen border around the same time ravaged a fuel tank at the facility.

 

 

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