‘Ocean on fire’: Footage of blaze in Gulf of Mexico takes social media by storm

A fire broke out in the southern waters of the Gulf of Mexico on Friday

A fire broke out in the southern waters of the Gulf of Mexico on Friday after an underwater pipeline leaked, literally setting the “ocean on fire”. Now, as videos of the “eye of fire” go viral on social media, netizens are spewing out memes hours after numerous vessels were seen dousing the flames.

Footage of what looked like a scene from an end-of-the-world movie, showing bright orange flames jumping out of water resembling molten lava, took social media by storm. The incident happened when an oil pipeline connected to Pemex’s Ku-Maloob-Zaap offshore platform complex ruptured, Mexican-state-owned petroleum company Petróleos Mexicanos, also known as Pemex, said.

As authorities were alerted, three boats were seen in action putting out the flames.

One vessel, seen far from the fire, has triggered a plethora of memes. Check out some of the funniest reactions here:

They say there is a pipeline fire in the Gulf of Mexico.

Personally, I’d like to believe Cthulhu has awoken.

“In his house at R’lyeh dead Cthulhu waits dreaming.” pic.twitter.com/RaTbQnVv1G

— Thomas McVicar (@ThomasMcVicar1) July 2, 2021

According to a statement released by the company, “The incident was dealt with immediately when the security protocols were activated and with the accompaniment of nearby fire fighting vessels such as Santa Cruz Island, Campeche Bay and Bourbon Alienor.” They added that following the fire incident, “the interconnection valves in the pipeline were closed”.

After nearly six hours, authorities successfully extinguished the fire and the gas emanation, restoring normal operating conditions.

“No injuries or evacuees are reported,” Pemex said, adding that an investigation will be conducted to ascertain what caused the accident.