PEMEX EXPERIENCES THREE ENVIRONMENTAL EMERGENCIES IN A WEEK; COLLISION IN CAMPECHE STATE CLAIMS 22 LIVES.

The state-run oil company PEMEX experienced three environmental emergencies within the span of a week in October, one involving a deadly collision between a drilling rig and a floating oil platform off the coast of Campeche, another a major spill from a leaky pipeline in Veracruz, and a third incident involving a leak at an oil well, also in Veracruz. The accidents brought renewed attention to deficiencies in PEMEX's safety practices and its obsolete and crumbling infrastructure.

The accident off the coast of Campeche occurred Oct. 24 when the Usumacinta drilling rig collided with the Kab-101 platform. Rescue workers were able to pull 61 oil workers to safety, but another 22 employees drowned at the site. This was the deadliest accident in the Gulf of Mexico since 1964, when an explosion on a drilling barge also resulted in 22 casualties. At least 15 of the rescued workers were taken to the hospital to be treated for hypothermia, dehydration, shock, and other problems.

PEMEX officials attributed the accident primarily to inclement weather. "Because of wind gusts of up to 130 km per hour and waves of six to eight meters...the Usumacinta drilling platform struck the valve train of the Kab-101 platform," PEMEX said in a statement.

The crash triggered fires near the damaged platforms, which complicated the rescue and cleanup operations, said Campeche Gov. Jorge Hurtado.

PEMEX accused of not taking proper precautions

There are allegations that PEMEX knew that a storm was coming and still sent the workers out to the rig that day. "There was a lot of wind that day," said Delia Reyes Diaz, who helps with meal preparations on one of the damaged platforms. "[The employees] should not have gone out there...because it seems like the winds were reaching 100 km per hour."

Reyes also said that PEMEX has offered inadequate safety training for its employees. "I am thankful that I was able to leave the platform in good shape," she told the Mexico City daily newspaper La Cronica de Hoy.

Gov. Andres Granier of Tabasco state said a lack of communication from agencies like the Servicio Metereologico Nacional (SMN) contributed to the problem. "[The SMN] did not tell us that a front was coming through with winds of 130 kph," said Granier, who raised concerns that the oil spill from the site of the accident would reach the coast of Tabasco. "The oil spill is practically in front of us."