Three Pemex tankers and a pickup truck piled up in a freak accident on the Chapala-Jocotepec highway on Monday.
Three tankers and a pickup truck belonging to Pemex, the government-operated oil company, piled up in a two-part freak accident that occurred Monday, July 9 at the intersection of the Chapala-Jocotepec highway and the Libramiento bypass.
The initial crash involved a tanker filled with Magna gasoline that rolled over after the driver skidded out of control on approaching the traffic light from the bypass around 4 p.m.
An empty tanker and a pickup truck carrying Pemex personnel arrived in the aftermath to carry out the transfer of fuel from the overturned truck. Just as technicians were about to start the decanting maneuver, a third tanker loaded with water to be used in case of a fire outbreak came barreling down the bypass, flew through the intersection and smashed straight into the pickup and backup tanker.
Another empty tanker arrived at the site around 7 p.m. and the fuel transfer was eventually carried out without further incident.A press release issued by Pemex stated that the rollover was provoked when the driver was forced to swerve suddenly to avoid hitting a private vehicle that crossed the tanker’s path. The company attributed the subsequent collision to loss of driver control due the prolonged slope of the roadway.
The back-to-back accident reports filed by traffic agent Alberto Vital Mendoza, in charge at the scene, chalked up both incidents to excess speed and lack of adequate precautions by the drivers that may have caused brake failure.
In response to the bizarre and dangerous chain reaction accident, Chapala police, traffic officers, local firemen and a large team of Pemex officials cordoned off the perimeters of the scene, rerouting oncoming traffic through the narrow streets of San Antonio Tlayacapan and the Centro Laguna parking lot. Hundreds of motorists suffered through hours of gridlock before the main roadways were finally reopened at 1 a.m.