An oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico that hurt marine life and stained beaches in February was caused by a leak near the Abkatun field run by state-owned Pemex, its CEO and the government said on Thursday (April 16), countering earlier explanations.

Pemex Chief Executive Officer Victor Rodriguez said there had been an oil pipeline leak and repairs which the company's leadership had not been informed of, and several executives were to leave their posts as a result of the incident.

Rodriguez also vowed that Pemex would overhaul its protocols to ensure that officials would be alerted sooner when such spills occur, and would be better prepared to calculate the size of any spill and any damage and take action to clean it up.

The spill sparked anger among locals, who were concerned the oil that spread to local beaches could contaminate a lagoon where communities farm fish and shrimp.

In late March, officials blamed seabed leaks as one of the reasons for oil being washed up on coasts and said they were also investigating petroleum tankers that had passed through the area at the time the spill was detected.

-Rodolfo Pena Roja, Anna Portella/Reuters