The Tacoa tragedy occurred 42 years ago

At approximately five o'clock in the morning of that December 19, 1982, the town of Arrecife in the state of La Guaira was surprised by the explosion of 11 million liters of heavy oil, which were stored in a tank of the Ricardo Zuloaga Thermoelectric Plant, now known as the Josefa Joaquina Sánchez Generator Set.

A few minutes after the explosion, the various State security forces try to reach the scene of the events, but the density of the fire made rescue impossible; diverting the plan to prevent the flames from spreading to another storage tank.

After the actions taken by firefighters and rescue groups, it was believed that the situation was under control, however, the tank that was burning began, like a volcano, to expel burning oil, ending the lives of firefighters and reporters who were there.

The fire destroyed everything it found in its path, not only did it leave human losses, it also wiped out cars, houses and even ships that were 400 meters offshore.

The Tacoa tragedy is considered to be the worst recorded in Venezuela at that time. Among the victims are the Distrito Federal Aeronautical Fire Department

Mazo News Team