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IXTOC I well blowout

The IXTOC I exploratory well blew out on June 3, 1979 in the Bay of Campeche off Ciudad 
del Carmen, Mexico. By the time the well was brought under control in 1980, an estimated 
140 million gallons of oil had spilled into the bay. The IXTOC I is currently #2 on the 
all-time list of largest oil spills of all-time, eclipsed only by the deliberate release 
of oil, from many different sources, during the 1991 Gulf War.

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