Mexico City, October 21 (However).– Mexican Petroleum (Pemex) reported this Tuesday afternoon that it has finished with the repair of the affected duct for the devastating rains and floods that left destruction and deaths in the northern Veracruzand that had affected the Pantepec River.
Pemex reported in a statement this afternoon where he confirmed that “he safely completed the repair of the pipeline affected by the extraordinary rains in the northern region of the state of Veracruz and immediately addressed the loss of containment recorded in around 8 kilometers in the vicinity of the municipality of Álamo Temapache, by activating industrial and environmental safety protocols.”
In coordination with the Secretary of the Navy, the Security, Energy and Environment Agency (ASEA) and local and state authorities, the authorities installed two containment barriers, oleophilic cordons and pumping and surface collection equipment in the Pantepec River, the parastatal company detailed.
📍Pemex completes pipeline repair in Álamo Temapache, Veracruz.
National statement: pic.twitter.com/VgeUQGdtZE
— Petróleos Mexicanos (@Pemex) October 21, 2025
Environmental emergency in Veracruz ⛽️
Hydrocarbon spill in the Pantepec River traveled 16 km and has reached the Tuxpan River.
The damage is extremely serious and it could take decades for the ecosystem to regenerate.
The culprit: A pipeline @Pemex pic.twitter.com/Fx6rdAyKVK
— FUCKPOLICECDMX (@FUCKCDMXPOLICIA) October 21, 2025
With the main maneuvers already completed, Pemex continues the sanitation and remediation work on the banks and nearby areas. Three more barriers will be installed over the course of the day. Specialized personnel carry out cleaning tasks, waste collection and application of absorbent material to recover the natural conditions of the environment.
Pemex indicated that it coordinates the actions through the Unified Command Post, located in the facilities of the Administration of the National Port System (Asipona) of Tuxpan, where personnel from the three levels of government participate to monitor the work and guarantee comprehensive attention to the population.
“Pemex reaffirms its commitment to the safety of communities, the protection of the environment and responsible attention to any eventuality, always prioritizing the well-being of the population and the care of natural resources,” he concluded.
Regional contingency plan activated
The Secretary of the Navy reported this Tuesday that it implemented the Regional Contingency and Unified Command Plan against hydrocarbon spills detected in recent days in the vicinity of the town of Citlaltépetl, Veracruz, approximately 50 kilometers from Tuxpan, in that entity.
In the National Palace and the government of Veracruz in silence.
In #Xúchitlmunicipality of #Poplara leak from the Polyduct #orange trees–#PozaRica of #PEMEX It let out hydrocarbon that has already reached the point where the water is captured to #Tuxpan.
The real images are shocking, the river… pic.twitter.com/SYdzc60tXe
— José Díaz (@JJDiazMachuca) October 21, 2025
“In this context, monitoring is being maintained and Álamo and Tuxpan, Veracruz, are identified as the highest-risk municipalities, and in coordination with various levels of government and Pemex, the contingency is being addressed,” he said in a statement, after complaints about the contamination of the Pantepec River.
The authorities detailed that they had 300 elements available for these actions, a containment ship, a plane, a helicopter, two drones, seven small vessels and 10 vehicles, as well as 650 meters of port container barrier, 500 meters of high seas container barrier, a skimmer, a towable tank, a temporary storage tank, a pressure and vacuum unit, an electric and portable vacuum cleaner and two storage barges, which are specialized equipment for this type of events.
“At the moment, the actions carried out by this agency in inter-institutional coordination have been the mobilization of personnel and specialized material, the activation of the Regional Contingency Plan and Unified Command, the beginning of containment activities in El Higueral and reconnaissance flights,” he explained.
🟥⚡️The rupture of a Pemex crude oil pipeline has caused the contamination of the Pantepec and Tuxpan rivers in Veracruz.
The inhabitants of the municipalities of Álamo Temapache and Tuxpan have been left without water to drink and places to harvest and fish food.😓 pic.twitter.com/omPLK58aBS
— Pedro Márquez (@PedroMrquez_) October 21, 2025
Likewise, among the actions planned to stop the contamination of the Pantepec River, the placement of containment barriers at strategic points and hydrocarbon recovery, dispersion with chemical substances, diversion of the flow of the spill, all in monitoring the evolution of the aforementioned contingency, works that Pemex confirmed had been completed.
The number of deaths caused by the emergency in five states of the country due to the intense rains last weekend now totals 76, according to the latest report from federal authorities. The atypical rainfall caused flooding and landslides in 108 municipalities of Veracruz, Hidalgo, Puebla, San Luis Potosí and Querétaro.
According to the data, four more people died compared to the figure reported yesterday, two of them in Veracruz, which already has 34 deaths; one more in Hidalgo, which accumulates 22 deaths; and Puebla adds another death, bringing this entity to 19 fatalities. Querétaro has one death and San Luis Potosí (SLP) has no deaths so far.
In turn, a total of 39 missing people are counted. Regarding people reported missing, the number dropped from 29 to 20 in Hidalgo. The data remained the same in Veracruz, which reports 14. Puebla, for its part, has five registered disappearances. There are no reports in Querétaro or San Luis Potosí.