Story By: Jonathan Macias, Sub Editor: Joseph Golder, Agency: Central European News
A Mexican family digging a well in their garden got more than they bargained for when they unearthed oil in the ground.
The unexpected discovery happened in the municipality of Macuspana, in the southeastern Mexican state of Tabasco when the Hernandez family, who live in the town of Belen, were digging a water well.
Local media report the family accidentally found oil as they were digging and it began to sprout from the earth.
After the discovery, local authorities in Tabasco evacuated some 40 families from the town to protect their safety, in addition to conducting inquiries to determine what had happened.
Civil Protection personnel and members of the Mexican Army cordoned off the site while technical staff from Petroleos Mexicanos (Pemex) made inquiries about the peculiar discovery.
Luis Pereyra, Civil Protection inspector, said that they have two hypotheses, one is that it might be an old duct, the other is that it could be a new oil deposit in the area.
The owner of the property told local media that he intended to dig the drainage well to build a purifier, but once they excavated they found that the well was draining water, then mud and eventually oil.
The families were evacuated from their homes due to the risk of an explosion, so the authorities have surrounded the area and only allowed them to approach their homes with extreme precautions to collect some belongings.
Local authorities have confirmed that they are also investigating a possible case of “huachicoleo” – the robbery of oil.
The governor of Tabasco, Adan Lopez, commented to local media: “We do not physically have the record that a pipeline passes through that place. Either it could be due to an omission when the line was laid, or it was also because someone at some point removed the prohibition mark. In any case, the relevant investigations are already being done.”
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