Kentucky officials taking steps as gas crisis grows in Southeast

(The Center Square) – Two Kentucky officials took steps on Wednesday as the gas shortages that hit the southeastern United States this past week began to influence behavior in the state.

Kentucky itself was not directly impacted by the shutdown of the Colonial Pipeline, which was caused by a ransomware attack on its network. However, there were reports of people “panic buying” large amounts of gas in some parts of the state.

Attorney General Daniel Cameron issued a consumer alert about excessive gas prices. Elizabeth Kuhn, Cameron’s communications director, told The Center Square the office has already fielded about three dozen complaints.

“We understand that many Kentuckians are concerned about rising prices at the pump, and we are vigilant against bad actors who want to take advantage of current circumstances by charging unwarranted prices for gasoline,” Cameron said in a statement.

Cameron also urged Kentuckians to only buy gas when they need it and added that reports indicated the state’s gas stations had access to fuel.

Erin Grant, a spokesperson for Kroger, which operates gas stations at several of its supermarkets across the state, told The Center Square the company was monitoring the situation but had not experienced any major impact from either the shutdown or panic buying.

Also on Wednesday, Kentucky Transportation Secretary Jim Gray announced he signed an order temporarily suspending some restrictions on carriers transporting petroleum products through the state and to those affected by the Colonial shutdown.

The order runs through June 11 and allows commercial drivers to exceed maximum driving times and bypass weigh stations if they’re serving affected markets.

“Many states are working in concert to minimize the disruption of fuel supplies,” Gray said. “Our cabinet is doing its part to help ensure that needed relief gets to the affected areas.”

As the Kentucky officials made their statements, workers at Colonial were preparing to restart the pipeline, which stretches from Houston to Linden, N.J.

By Thursday morning, the company announced “substantial progress” had been made and that the entire pipeline should be operational by noon ET.

Still, as the company noted Wednesday, it will take several days for deliveries to return to normal.

Disclaimer: This content is distributed by The Center Square