Several gas stations are running low on fuel and prices have spiked after the pipeline oil spill in Alabama.
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“We continue to be in regular communication with our customers, who are also working on their own individual contingency plans to minimize supply disruptions”.
Pump prices surged over the weekend in some southern states following the recent shutdown of the Colonial Pipeline that carries fuel to the USA east coast, and states including North Carolina reported gasoline shortages.
Governor Terry McAuliffe has declared a state of emergency in response to the temporary shutdown of Colonial Pipeline’s main lines in Shelby County, Ala.
Tanker trucks line up at a Colonial Pipeline Co. facility in Pelham, Ala., near the scene of a 250,000-gallon gasoline spill on Friday, Sept. 16, 2016.
The pipeline runs from Texas to New Jersey, supplying fuel to states in the Southeast and on the East Coast.
The Alpharetta, Georgia-based company has two main lines.
News outlets report that gasoline prices in some areas of the Carolinas have increased in recent days.
The company said it is shipping as much gasoline as possible on its distillate mainline, Line 2, in order to mitigate the impact of the pipeline that has been shut down.
Ingles Gas Express in Hiawassee turned off their price sign lights in an area where gas is becoming scarce, an employee said. The average price a week ago was around $2.10.
North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory says he and other officials are working with fuel suppliers to monitor and quickly replenish gasoline supplies.
In a statement Sunday Gov.
McCrory says that should help protect consumers from excessive gas prices and ensure an uninterrupted supply of fuel. It is unclear when construction will be completed but the company has previously said it anticipates reopening the line, which can carry up to 1.2 million barrels of gasoline a day, later this week.
Colonial Pipeline said it was working “around the clock” to fix the break and supplies have either been delivered or are on their way to locations in Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee, South Carolina, and North Carolina.
Fuel supplies in at least five states – Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee and the Carolinas – were threatened by the spill, and the U.S. Department of Transportation ordered the company responsible, Colonial Pipeline, to take corrective action before the fuel starts flowing again.
“As of now. we’ve not received any complaints”, Gov. Nathan Deal’s spokeswoman Jen Ryan said in a statement Sunday.
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ATLANTA (AP) – Gas prices spiked and drivers found “out of service” bags covering pumps as the gas shortage in the South rolled into the work week, raising fears that the disruptions could become more widespread.
