Five states most affected by the cyberattack on oil pipelines; gas station shortages provokes panic purchases

The states of North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Georgia and Virginia are the states most affected by fuel shortages due to the cyberattack that occurred last Friday, May 7 to the oil pipelines of the Colonial Pipeline company, energy authorities say.

“It is not that we have a gasoline shortage, it is that we have a supply shortage. Things will return to normal soon, “said Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm.

Faced with the fear of the lack of fuel , in cities such as Atlanta, Georgia, users made long lines and panic purchases to refuel their automobiles.

Others were surprised that the Gasoline supply was exhausted in some of the gas stations due to lack of supply.

“ We know that We have gasoline, we just have to take it to the right places “, insisted the Head of Energy of the Joe Biden Government at a press conference from the White House.

Granholm anticipated that for the closing of the markets this Wednesday, the company Colonial Pipeline will make a decision regarding the restart of pumping along the 8, 850 kilometers of pipelines that it operates, although in any case it confessed that It will take a few days before the network will be operational again.

And while gasoline supplies are reestablished in some states, the Joe Biden government called on consumers not to stockpile fuel and sellers not to take advantage of this moment to speculate.

“ There should be no reason to accumulate gasoline “, insisted the secretary Energy consultant Jennifer Granholm, in addition to warning that “an excessive increase in prices” of fuels will not be tolerated.

Experts warn that if the stoppage persists of activities, fuel prices could reach levels not seen since the end of 2014.

The American Automobile Association (AAA) revealed that the average price of gasoline stood at 2 this Tuesday. 98 dollars, versus the 2. 96 of the national average during the weekend.

Also the Texas intermediate oil price (WTI), which serves as a reference in the United States, rose by 0. 55 %, until 55. 28 dollars, after a session that started with losses, although it recovered throughout the day.

For his part, the Secretary of Homeland Security of the United States, Alejandro Mayorkas, affirmed that the attacks with ransomware have left more than this year alone , 000 million dollars in losses in the country.

According to the Bureau Federal Investigations of the United States, FBI, a 1232827422 group of hackers called “DarkSide”, were responsible for the cyber attack to the Colonial Pipeline company, the largest pipeline network in the United States.

With information from Efe.

Keep reading: FBI blames hacker group “DarkSide” for cyberattack on Colonial Pipeline oil pipelines