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Death toll rises to 115 in Mexico pipeline fire

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People prepare to bury a person who died in the gas pipeline explosion, in the village of Tlahuelilpan, Mexico, Sunday, Jan. 20, 2019. A massive fireball that engulfed locals scooping up fuel spilling from a pipeline ruptured by thieves in central Mexico killed dozens of people and badly burned dozens more on Jan. 18. (AP Photo/Claudio Cruz)

MEXICO CITY – Mexican officials say the death toll from a fire at an illegally tapped pipeline more than a week ago has risen to 115.

Health Secretary Jorge Alcocer said Monday that there are still 32 injured.

On Jan. 18, residents of the town of Tlahuelilpan in the central state of Hidalgo gathered to collect gasoline from a leaking tap in a farm field. A geyser of gasoline rose high into the air and eventually ignited.

The government of President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has made taking on the fuel thieves a top priority. The armed forces have been deployed to protect pipelines of the state-controlled oil company Pemex.

A total of 14,894 illegal taps were found throughout Mexico in 2018.

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