Gas Pipeline To 50 Million People Ruptured

Section of the Colonial Pipeline, which runs from Houston to New York, has been closed since Sept. 9 after a spill of roughly 250,000 gallons was discovered in rural Shelby County, Ala. Click the link below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xTXHeeGzvXI

The major pipeline, one pipe of which has been severed, provides gasoline for an estimated 50 million people on the East Coast each day, according to company estimates. The cause of the leak has yet to be determined, according to the company's most recent statement.

The pipeline's operator has said full service will not be restored until at least next week. The closure has set off an industry-wide scramble as suppliers seek alternative ways to transport gasoline to the East Coast.

                   Prices have yet to move much. They're only up a penny or two in 

                   the last week in states such as Georgia, South Carolina and       

                   Tennessee, according to AAA.

                   But gas prices could spike by as much as 15 cents per gallon or 

                   more in those three states, as well as North Carolina and Virginia, i                    in the next week according to GasBuddy.com analyst Patrick 

                   DeHaan. #GasPrices may rise 5-15c in GA, NC, TN, VA and 10-20c i                     in SC over the next week due to supply/pipeline outage. Some 

                   stations may run out.— Patrick DeHaanGasBuddyGuy) September                       15, 2016

                    Ships have already been dispatched to carry fuel from Texas to 

                    New York as part of the effort. There are also likely to be far more                     tanker trucks on the road carrying gasoline than normal said Tom                      Kloza, chief oil analyst with the Oil Price Information Service. But 

                   pipelines are by far the cheapest way to move gasoline or oil, so 

                   any alternative will raise costs. And not every station will be able 

                   to get the gasoline it needs, he said.

                   "You're going to see some places without gasoline," he said. "It's 

                   like a mini-hurricane."

                   The pipeline operator said that based on its current projections, 

                   parts of Georgia, Alabama, Tennessee, North Carolina and South 

                   Carolina will be the first markets to suffer potential supply   

                   disruptions.

                   The governors of Alabama and Georgia have already declared 

                   states of emergency.

                   The Northeast markets such as New Jersey at the end of the 

                   pipeline are less likely to see an impact because they can get gas                      from other locations, said Kloza.

                  Gas prices typically fall at this time of year. Thursday was the day t                   that stations in most of the country could start using the cheaper w                   Winter blend of gasoline rather than the summer blend, which is                          formulated to combat smog.

                   "People are going to be seeing a 5 to 10 cent a gallon increase at a                   time they're normally seeing a 5 to 10 cent a gallon price drop,"                          said Kloza.

                    Mansfield Oil, a fuel distributor, has warned its customers to take 

                    fuel savings measures and to place their orders early. The 

                    company said the supply of gasoline is currently very thin along 

                    the closed pipeline, and that it was trucking in supplies from the                         coast to meet demand.

                    The company said it was treating the situation "with the same 

                    importance and urgency as a natural disaster." Shown below is                           the site of   the ruptured pipeline.   Below is an old article on 

                    pipeline terrorism.