Gas shortage leads to panic buying in parts of the country, but will California be affected?
CENTRAL COAST, Calif. (KION) Long lines can be seen at gas stations around the country as some parts of the U.S. experience fuel shortages. The shortage comes during a Colonial Pipeline shutdown resulting from a ransomware attack. Some gas stations in the eastern states are running on fumes, and customers are panic buying gasoline.
CNN reports, The Colonial Pipeline, supplies nearly half the gasoline and diesel to the East Coast. 65% of all gas stations in North Carolina, 42% in Georgia, Virginia and South Carolina are without gasoline. The few gas stations with fuel remaining are overwhelmed. But here in California, experts say there's no urgent rush to the pumps, not to say it doesn't come without caution.
Vice President, Strategic Communications, Western States Petroleum Association, Kevin Slagle said, "Even though the Colonial Pipeline doesn’t supply energy for the west, there could be domino effects if the pipeline doesn’t get up to speed soon. We don’t quite know what those impacts will look like but we could see some shortening of supply here out west.
However, customers at the pump today said locally they're less concerned about a shortage and more worried about the steep gas prices. While filling up, Andres Robles of Andy Auto Glass in Salinas said they once were able to offer free mobile service, that's no longer the case. "The gas is too expensive. So how am I going to afford it myself to offer someone free when I have to spend. I use to fill it up for 27 dollars. Now I have to fill it up for 54 dollars."
Slagle said, prices are a separate issue from the pipeline shutdown. The pretty price tag on local gas has a lot to do with the cost of living in California. The first dollar fifteen at the pump is roughly taxes and fees. It also has more to do with the supply and demand as we emerge from the pandemic, which has upset many commodities. An issue before the pipeline hack.
"No one likes the disruption of what runs our daily lives. and this is the world we live in right now. Its upsetting and it effects your lives. " Customer and Monterey County resident, Jim Gailey.
If a shortage were to happen, don't panic. There's no need to hoard gas, like paper products seen at the beginning of the pandemic. CNN reported that the Colonial Pipeline set a goal on Monday of "substantially restoring operational service” by the end of the week. Slagle continues, "The supply will be there its just going to take a few days to work its self back to normal."
For now, the Golden State has its own strong supply, “California is an energy island. So we don’t have pipe lines coming in with fuel for example. So what is produced here and refined here is largely used here. We have some good energy security in our state.
