Petrol shortages sweep US as Colonial Pipeline remains down

Four days into the crisis, Colonial Pipeline Co has only managed to restart a small segment of its pipeline as a stopgap measure and doesn’t expect to be able to substantially restore service before the weekend.

Motorists across a broad swath of the U.S. East Coast and South are struggling to find gasoline and diesel as filling stations run dry amid the unprecedented pipeline disruption caused by a criminal hack. From Virginia to Louisiana, convenience stores and corner gas stations are turning away customers as tanks tap out amid panic buying. The White House relaxed some environmental rules in a bid to allow gasoline to flow in from other parts of the country. One Washington D.C.-area fuel distributor warned that “catastrophic” shortages are imminent and called on government officials to order school buses to stay off the roads.