At least 73 people were killed after a pipeline, ruptured by suspected fuel thieves, exploded in central Mexico, authorities said on Jan. 19, as President Andres Manuel López Obrador defended the army despite its failure to clear the site before the blast.
Forensic experts filled body bags in the field where the explosion occurred on the evening of Jan. 18 by the town of Tlahuelilpan in the state of Hidalgo. It was one of the deadliest incidents to hit Mexico’s troubled oil infrastructure in years.
