Overview
- A tanker cisterna exploded in the Chachahuén Sur petroleum base in Pata Mora, Malargüe, during the evening of Wednesday and emergency teams secured the scene.
- Two TSB employees died: Sergio Adrián Samchuk, 47, was pronounced dead at the site and Gastón Antonio Andrada, 40, died after being flown to a hospital in Rincón de los Sauces, Neuquén.
- The Unidad Fiscal de Malargüe, Policía de Mendoza and provincial security units are leading peritajes and forensic work to determine how the blast began; preliminary accounts report a loud explosion and a subsequent gas cloud but no confirmed technical cause.
- Company TSB issued condolences, said it activated contingency and worker-assistance protocols, and declared it is cooperating with investigators as authorities collect evidence from the workshop area.
- The site is part of Mendoza’s hydrocarbon zone often called the 'Vaca Muerta mendocina,' and the incident may prompt tighter safety reviews and oversight of contractor operations that cross provincial lines.