# Local Gas Shortage--Pipeline Break. **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [September 16, 2016, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-gas-shortage-pipeline-break/766111 "2016-09-16T21:37:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2016, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-gas-shortage-pipeline-break/766111/1 "2016-09-16T21:37:54Z")
> **[Gasoline shortages, price hikes coming to East Coast after pipeline leak](https://money.cnn.com/2016/09/16/investing/gasoline-prices-shortage-pipeline-leak/)** > > A leak has caused the closure of a pipeline that carries gasoline to the eastern U.S., a disruption that threatens to drive up prices and leave service stations without fuel to sell. The South is also suffering. Here in “Bug Tussle” (:D) several local gas stations have **NO GAS LEFT** signs up, prices have jumped twenty to thirty cents a gallon. Panic buying, & long lines. I was lucky to fill my tank. This should last a week. Hooray. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2016, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-gas-shortage-pipeline-break/766111/2 "2016-09-17T18:05:36Z")
The Governor has issued a proclamation, allowing gas truck driver to operate extra, emergency hours, above & beyond usual ones, &b the States Attorney General has put out a warning about the State’s price gouging laws. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2016, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-gas-shortage-pipeline-break/766111/3 "2016-09-17T19:39:02Z")
How long does it take to fix a cracked pipe? A day? A Week at the most? I know it’s a big pipe and the parts aren’t in the plumbing section of Home Depot. But, it’s still a straight forward plumbing repair? ---
**Author:** ![flatlined](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/eb9ed0/32.png) [@flatlined](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flatlined)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2016, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-gas-shortage-pipeline-break/766111/4 "2016-09-17T20:28:06Z")
Fixing the pipe is just the first part of fixing the problem. The refineries supporting the gas line have had to be shut down or slowed down. Bringing them back up to full production takes time as well. Once everything is up and running, there will be increased demand until all of the fleets and storage tanks are refilled. You should be able to refill your tank when you need to, but it will be a while before everything goes back to normal. I lived through this in Arizona a number of years back. The end result was that I met and later married one of the evil oil guys when they were running an additional pipeline to ensure that the 6th largest city in the US would not have to rely on a single pipeline. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2016, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-gas-shortage-pipeline-break/766111/5 "2016-09-17T23:42:20Z")
It gets worse. [http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/us-agency-orders-corrective-action-gas-pipeline-spill-42161535](http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/us-agency-orders-corrective-action-gas-pipeline-spill-42161535) > [@](#): > > Lines formed at gas stations across the South on Saturday and drivers who were able to find fuel had to pay more for it in some cases, as prices edged up following a pipeline spill in Alabama. > > 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 to take corrective action before the fuel starts flowing again.