Fire at Mexican gas facility kills 26

Twenty-six workers have died in a fire at a gas transfer facility in the northern Mexican state of Tamaulipas, the country's state-owned oil company said. In addition to the deaths, 28 workers were hospitalized and seven were missing, The Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday. Petroleos Mexicanos, or Pemex, said the fire broke out during maintenance work on a part of its facility that was out of operation. A special team of firefighters was sent in to help crews shut down the valves at the facility's gas reception station located on a highway running from Monterrey to the U.S.-Mexican border town of Reynosa. The Pemex facility transfers natural gas and condensates from the firm's Burgos production complex to the company's gas and petrochemical division. Pemex has been importing more natural gas in recent months in response to rising demand.