Storm kills 18 Mexican oil workers, shuts ports

State-owned oil monopoly Pemex said 61 people had been rescued after huge waves knocked the Usumacinta drilling platform into an adjacent rig late on Tuesday.

Workers on the rig, in the Kab oil field in the southeastern Gulf of Mexico, had jumped into emergency rafts after the collision caused leaks in crude oil and natural gas pipes.

Exploration and Production Chief Carlos Morales called the accident one of the worst in Pemex`s history. The death toll could rise as bad weather hampered efforts by Navy rescue teams to locate other workers.

Attempts by rescue crews in eight helicopters and four rescue boats to reach life rafts were thwarted for hours by waves of up to 20 feet (6 meters).

The bad weather shut Mexico`s top three oil exporting ports in the crude-rich Gulf of Mexico for a second day, suspending oil shipments to the United States. Port officials saw it as unlikely they would reopen before Thursday.