75°
70º | 76°
Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm stated that the Colonial Pipeline would be returning to normal operations following a ransomware attack.
The Russian hacking group Darkside orchestrated the attack and it caused the 5,500 mile fuel pipeline to shut down. The pipeline provides over 100 million gallons of fuel every day.
U.S. Rep. Randy Weber (R-Friendswood) criticized President Joe Biden for his perceived indifference to the ongoing fuel crisis and for his opposition to the Keystone Pipeline.
"The Colonial Pipeline moves 2.5 million barrels of product a day," Weber said in a post to his Twitter account. "The Keystone pipeline moves 830,000 barrels a day. That’s one-third of the output of the Colonial Pipeline. President Biden needs to wake up."
Weber continued his criticisms of Biden in a Twitter thread on the same day.
"We need the Keystone Pipeline to run through Texas ASAP," Weber said. "Look what happens when you need it. We went from energy abundance to fuel shortages and surging prices in a matter of four months."
With the Colonial Pipeline restarting, state and federal officials, including the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, are telling citizens not to panic buy gas in mass. Citizens have specifically been advised against filling plastic bags with gasoline in an attempt to preserve it for later. Unlike many states, Texas is not in any danger of running out of gas.
Specifically, all gas stations in Austin currently have fuel and prices under $2.60 a gallon. Gas prices are not expected to surge in Texas because despite the pipeline being based there, it is not a source for gasoline within Texas itself. Conversely, panic buying of gas has already started in the northeast and south, with the governor of North Carolina declaring a state of emergency and calling off fuel regulations in one dramatic instance.