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Shop NowSix workers were confirmed dead following an explosion and fire at the Jose Cuervo tequila distillery on Wednesday. Two others are reported injured. You probably won’t notice any disruption in supplies. The most noteworthy thing about the story is that two separate fires are being reported. That could indicate more than a simple industrial accident but it’s too soon to tell. Considering the factory’s located in the Mexican border state of Jalisco, there are all sorts of nefarious possibilities.
Explosion at Tequila distillery
Local authorities in the town of Tequila confirmed that “at least six workers have died in an explosion and fire.” The incident happened at the Jose Cuervo plant.
An additional two workers are reported injured though their condition is unclear. Casa Cuervo is “the world’s largest producer” of the popular Mexican spirit.
According to a spokesperson with Jalisco’s civil protection agency, “the incident involved the explosion of a tank car.” When that one went up, it “ignited three additional tank cars, each with a capacity of 219,000 liters.”
An explosion at a Jose Cuervo tequila plant killed at least five company workers yesterday in the spirit's hometown of Tequila, Jalisco, Mexico 🇲🇽
▪︎ 23 July 2024 ▪︎#explosion #Mexico #Tequila #JoseCuervo pic.twitter.com/Bhhv3uUSqO
— DISASTER TRACKER (@DisasterTrackHQ) July 24, 2024
That’s not enough tequila to put a dent in the market supply. Police aren’t divulging any suspicions as to a cause at this point. Officials also aren’t making a big deal about another fire at the distillery.
Because distilleries are extremely flammable environments to start with, “at least 40 firefighting and civil protection teams responded to the incident.” Tequila doesn’t simply taste like lighter fluid, the higher proof versions burn like it, too.
Casa Cuervo issued a statement assuring customers they’re “assisting authorities with their investigation and would reinforce security controls at its facilities.” That tends to indicate foul play.
Another fire reported
Jalisco’s Civil Protection agency told the press that “another fire broke out at the factory Wednesday morning in a storage area for cardboard and other materials.”
Without speculating as to a cause for that one, either, the official noted the “fire was quickly controlled and no additional risks were reported.” Alfonso Magallanes, the mayor of Tequila, urged “residents not to approach the factory due to the ongoing situation.”
Mexico’s state of Jalisco happens to be the largest producer of agave, the plant tequila is made from. Agave makes up “nearly 75% of the nation’s annual crop.”
Explosión en la planta de fabricación de José Cuervo en Tequila, Jalsco.
Hasta el momento y de forma extraoficial se habla dedos personas que habrían perdido la vida y al menos otras 5 con lesiones. pic.twitter.com/GoA7QIcJtu— Monica Garza (@monicagarzag) July 24, 2024
Mexico consumes a lot of the beverage but they aren’t alone. The Jose Cuervo distillery also brings in over a million tourists each year, from all over the world.
Here in the U.S. we enjoy it almost as much as the Mexicans. “The U.S. is the largest market for Mexican tequila exports.” With inflation factored in, between 2014 and 2019 imports of the liquid gold “increased from $1.1 billion to $4.9 billion.”
We’ll keep an eye on this one to see if anyone gets named as an arson suspect. It’s probably just another case of someone not paying the right amount to the cartels for protection, or enough bribe to the police for the same thing. They pass those costs along to the consumer with every bottle.
