Energy secretary: No need to hoard gasoline amid pipeline shutdown

Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said the Colonial Pipeline "should be substantially operational by the end of this week and over the weekend.”

The Biden administration on Tuesday warned that southeastern states faced a gasoline "supply crunch" following the ransomware attack on the Colonial Pipeline, as several states declared emergencies or suspended rules and one major airline altered its flight routes. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said that Colonial Pipeline's chief executive had indicated the company would decide by the close of business on Wednesday whether it could fully restart the pipeline, but that even if it did, "it will take a few days to ramp up operations." "Much as there was no cause for, say, hoarding toilet paper at the beginning of the pandemic," Granholm told reporters, "there should be no cause for hoarding gasoline, especially in light of the fact that the pipeline should be substantially operational by the end of this week and over the weekend." Top federal officials encouraged calm, even as Virginia's governor on Tuesday declared a state of emergency to "prepare for any potential supply shortages." His counterpart in North Carolina did the same the day before, while in Georgia, the governor suspended the gas tax and weight limits on trucks transporting fuel.