A gas pipe near Birmingham, Alabama, sprung a leak last Wednesday, causing gas shortages in five different states. Many Sheetz locations were the first victims by running out of regular gas, with all the smaller gas stations following after them. Lack of gas is a huge deal in southeastern states, mainly Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia as people can rarely walk everywhere they need to go. Lines are long, and people are going crazy, not knowing when their stations and tanks will be full again. The shortage has also led to a rise in prices, seven cents more in North and South Carolina, and even a twelve cent increase in Georgia. Alabama, Tennessee, North Carolina, Virginia, and Georgia have all declared states of emergency this weekend as well. Junior Jack Morgan said, “I had to wait in a line with literally thirty cars to get gas the other day. Someone needs to fix this because I have places to go.” Many stations are closing until gas arrives, and those who are open have extremely long lines. Some places are even raising their prices by eighty cents, causing a lot of people to get upset. Attorney General Roy Cooper announced that more than six hundred people have complained to his office about price gouging and urges consumers to continue reporting when necessary. Everyone needs gas, but not for ridiculous amounts of money by today’s standards. Students have been hoping that the gas shortage will cause school buses to run out and force school to be canceled, but the buses use diesel, which is about all you can find during this shortage.

 Officials have reported that if the bypass line is built and ready by Wednesday, it will need to undergo a day of testing and will not start flowing gas until Friday at the earliest. Colonial, the company that mainly supplies our gas stations with gas, announced that they have been gathering gas from Gulf Coast refiners and shipping it out to marketers throughout the southeast. Larger companies like Sheetz, Exxon, and BP are getting their orders before less popular companies or family owned gas stations. Though consumers are not sure how soon shipments will be delivered, and how much gas will really be available, fuel will be around soon, Prices may still be higher for a few weeks, but the hope is they will go back down to the state they were a few weeks ago. Sophomore Patricia Mera said, “I don’t have my own car yet, but this still affects me. I just want life to go back to normal and people to not freak out about their tank running low again.” The Exxon on Falls of Neuse and Honeycutt had a line going eight cars down each street holding up traffic, just for an idea of how bad it has been. As soon as Raleigh has a steady supply of gas again, life will be back to normal.