RUMORS FUELED BY SOCIAL MEDIA OF PRICE HIKES CREATE RUN ON GASOLINE IN BROWNSVILLE; THE MADNESS OF CROWDS

(Ed.'s Note: Despite state officials' denials that there is a gas shortage and that hikes in gasoline prices will soar to $5 a gallon because of the impact of Hurricane Harvey on Houston refineries, rumors in social media fueled a panic all across the city and many outlets, such as the Sunoco station at the intersection of Price and Old Port Isabel roads, ran out of gasoline and turned away drivers.

The reports from across the city indicate that gasoline stocks were also depleted at most gas stations by desperate motorists who feared that there would be no gas – or only available at inflated prices – after midnight tonight.

Motorists who had been in line for the better part of an hour in lines stretching out into the street from the stations were turned away by station employees when the pumps stopped functioning. In some cases, the Brownsville Police Department was called to handle disputes between irate drivers.

Motorists in Brownsville might expect to find gas unavailable Tuesday morning until the stations restock from their suppliers in Corpus Christi. In the photo at right, yellow plastic bags give notice that there is no fuel available of any grade.

The McAllen Monitor reported that Christi Craddick, the head of the Texas Railroad Commission which regulates the oil and gas industry in Texas, said Valley residents should expect a spike in gasoline prices of 5 to 10 cents over the next couple of days and as high as 25 cents over the next few weeks because of limits on current gasoline production. But that should level out in the long run, she said.

Craddick told the newspaper that industry representatives are reporting to her agency that areas such as Corpus Christi and other cities in the Coastal Bend region are experiencing gasoline shortages, but that has more to do with access to pumps than with a shortage of fuel.

She emphasized that there are no reports of shortages in the Rio Grande Valley and does not expect any shortages as long as roadways in this region remain dry and passable – unlike many areas in east Texas.)