Government and consumer officials are urging Kentuckians to not panic buy gasoline in the wake of the Colonial Pipeline shutdown.
The pipeline, which suffered a ransomware attack, supplies about 40 percent of the gasoline purchased on the east coast, along with many parts of the southeast.
There currently is not a gas shortage, many government and oil officials have said, but panic buying has drained pumps in many Kentucky counties and communities.
“You and I have faced a lot of challenges these past 15 months, and the reason we’ve done so well is we’ve stayed calm no matter how big the challenges are,” Gov. Andy Beshear said on Wednesday. “That’s why I need everybody here in Kentucky to take a breath and stay calm about concerns with the cyberattack on the pipeline. (If) everybody stays calm and doesn’t make a rush to your local gas station, there should be enough for everyone. Remember, just like at the beginning of COVID, we’ve got to make sure that our neighbor has what he or she needs, as well.”
Around the country, over 1,400 gas stations have run out of fuel after panic buying by residents, the Associated Press reports.
“This is a short-term blip,” AAA Blue Grass spokeswoman Lori Weaver Hawkins said. “This isn’t some big nationwide gas shortage.”
The 5,500 mile pipeline, which runs from Houston, Texas, to Linden, New Jersey, was brought back on-line yesterday, with Colonial officials saying Wednesday night that it hopes to “substantially restore the flow of gas late this week.”
Kentucky has temporarily lifted restrictions on the transportation of petroleum to help states affected by the hack.
Kentucky Transportation Secretary Jim Gray signed an official order that temporarily relieves petroleum haulers going to affected states from driving time limits and weigh station stops.
The order lasts through June 11.
By Ken Howlett, News Director
Contact Ken at ken@k105.com
