Colonial was ordered to fix troubleshooting gaps across its entire network to prevent future spills. The major leak discovered at a wildlife refuge outside of Charlotte was not a first occurrence for the company. It was eventually reported that almost 18 times more gasoline leaked from its pipe than its original estimate,
On Monday, North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper issued a state of emergency to ensure adequate fuel supplies were delivered across the state. Despite anti-gouging orders in effect, prices are rising as a result of the shutdown across the Carolinas with the average price for a gallon of gas in Charlotte is $2.90.Â
The Colonial Pipeline, which stretches from Texas to New Jersey, transports a large amount of gasoline across several states along the 5,500-mile run. It was still offline as of Tuesday Morning and is expected to be back up and running later this week.
After initially reporting that 63,000 gallons of gasoline had spilled and most of that had been recovered, the pipeline's owner, Colonial Pipeline Co., acknowledged in January that 1.2 million gallons had actually leaked from the ruptured pipe." Over four times more than initially reported by Colonial and one of the worst spills in the state's history.Â
