Minister of Public Safety acknowledged that while not everyone would adhere to the rules, he's convinced that “the overwhelming majority” would do the right thing.
Article content
Long lines and empty shelves are greeting some British Columbians trying to buy groceries and gas.
Advertisement
Article content
Within hours of Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General Mike Farnworth announcing an order limiting non-essential vehicles to 30 litres of gas per trip to the gas station, social media posts started to appear showing gas stations packed with cars and people not adhering to the 30-litre limit.
“Not convinced the gas rationing is going well — on the pump before me, the person bought 44 litres,” wrote Twitter user Brianne Melnyk.
Advertisement
Article content
In a news conference Saturday morning, Farnworth acknowledged that while not everyone would adhere to the new rule, he was convinced that “the overwhelming majority” of British Columbians would do the right thing.
The order, which runs from Nov. 19 until Dec. 1, applies to all fuel suppliers in the Lower Mainland to Hope region, the Sea to Sky region, Sunshine Coast, the Gulf Islands and Vancouver Island. Violations are subject to a $2,000 fine.
Essential vehicles will have unrestricted access to fuel, mainly through commercial trucking stations that use the cardlock system.
Farnworth noted that gas station operators were working to implement a 30-litre cap at filling stations in order to aid enforcement.
Advertisement
Article content
“It’s critical that we make sure that (gas) is available for the emergency services and for the ability to move and transport goods around,” Farnworth said.
Images of empty shelves in grocery stores also started to fill social media feeds, including in Burnaby, where at least one Save-On-Foods was “temporarily limiting quantities on high-demand items” like eggs and milk.
Advertisement
Article content
The catastrophic weather system that hit southwestern B.C. and parts of the Interior last week displaced as many as 17,000 people, caused landslides that cut off critical traffic routes, created devastating floods in places like Abbotsford and Merritt, and has resulted in at least four deaths.
The flooding and mudslides severed highways and disrupted supply chains, including the Trans Mountain pipeline, which created temporary shortages at the pump as the government works to bring in more fuel through new routes.
Farnworth said the province was considering all options to alleviate the fuel shortage, including shipping fuel via barge from as far away as California.
He also said the province has asked the federal government to move up the date in B.C. for when PCR tests are no longer needed for trips less than 72 hours, which would allow British Columbians to cross the border for gas. As it stands now, the restriction won’t be lifted until Nov. 30.
— With files from Cheryl Chan and Gordon Hoekstra
CLICK HERE to report a typo.
Is there more to this story? We’d like to hear from you about this or any other stories you think we should know about. Email vantips@postmedia.com .
https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMiU2h0dHBzOi8vdmFuY291dmVyc3VuLmNvbS9uZXdzL2xvY2FsLW5ld3MvcGFuaWMtYnV5aW5nLWtpY2tzLWFzLWdhcy1yYXRpb25pbmctYmVnaW5z0gGBAWh0dHBzOi8vdmFuY291dmVyc3VuLmNvbS9uZXdzL2xvY2FsLW5ld3MvcGFuaWMtYnV5aW5nLWtpY2tzLWFzLWdhcy1yYXRpb25pbmctYmVnaW5zL3djbS8xMzk1YmRhNS0xYjgxLTQ5ZmItOThmMy03Njk5ODljOGZiZjkvYW1wLw?oc=5
2021-11-21 17:09:59Z
1182583403
Tidak ada komentar:
Posting Komentar