Southeastern States Experiencing Gas Shortages and Long Lines After Cyberattack on Major Pipeline
Evan James
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Residents in southeastern states like South Carolina and Georgia are struggling to fill up their tanks after a pipeline cyberattack last week.
Many people have tweeted out accounts and videos of long lines, higher prices, and even stations that have run out of gas altogether.
Reports of such incidents have mostly come out of North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Tennessee. The American Automobile Association, however, has said that gas stations in Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, and Mississippi could see increased prices and limited supplies this week as well.
Colonial Pipeline, based in Georgia and a major supplier of fuel for the East Coast, temporarily shut down operations after a ransomware cyberattack late last week. A group of “veteran cybercriminals” called DarkSide is responsible for the attack, and they’re ostensibly in it for the money, not for the disruption per se. DarkSide bills itself as a business out to make a profit, though their model involves demanding ransom money from their victims.
On Monday White House press secretary Jen Psaki released a statement saying that President Joe Biden “continues to be regularly briefed on the Colonial Pipeline incident.”
“The Administration is continually assessing the impact of this ongoing incident on fuel supply for the East Coast,” the statement read. “We are monitoring supply shortages in parts of the Southeast and are evaluating every action the Administration can take to mitigate the impact as much as possible.”
“The President has directed agencies across the Federal Government to bring their resources to bear to help alleviate shortages where they may occur.”
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