A fire broke out on an oil tanker of Mexican state oil company Pemex in the Gulf of Mexico on Saturday (September 24), forcing all the crew to be evacuated in the latest accident to plague the struggling firm.

The blaze on the tanker "Burgos" occurred off the coast of Boca del Rio in Veracruz state and all the crew were safe, Pemex said in a tweet. Mexico's Navy said there were 31 crew members and that all had returned to port.

Large flames engulfed the vessel with plumes of smoke rising high into a cloudy sky as other boats hosed the tanker.

Early on Saturday evening, Pemex said that firefighting teams were still working to put out the blaze.

The tanker was carrying diesel and Magna gasoline and it was not clear what caused the fire, Pemex noted.

Fisherman Michel Mancera told Reuters he was fishing near the tanker when he suddenly heard a loud explosion.

"There was an explosion on the boat. And when it exploded, parts of the boat started to fall, steel parts. And about 15 or 20 minutes later, the lifeboats came down from the boat," Mancera said.

The fire follows a series of other mishaps at Pemex, which is coping with major losses, increased competition at home, sharp budget cuts and lower revenue due to the oil price rout.