For more than two weeks, fuel has been unavailable at the sole gas station on one Canadian island, forcing residents to ration what remains in their tanks.
Here's what to know
Bell Island, part of Canada's eastern province of Newfoundland and Labrador, is home to about 2,000 people.
With the island's pumps empty, resident Samantha Bickford told CBC News that she has relied on other people to bring her fuel for her ATV.
"I've been getting people to fill up jerry cans for me to bring them across [from Portugal Cove]," Bickford said. "But it's increasingly harder and harder."
Dwayne Yetman, owner of Island Gas Bar and Convenience, said rising costs for both the business and its customers had reduced sales, making it difficult to keep fuel available and remain profitable.
What's being done?
Yetman said he has a contract with Irving and has stayed in regular contact with municipal and provincial governments, which have helped him in talks with the company to restore deliveries.
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Newfoundland and Labrador's Department of Jobs, Growth, and Rural Development could not discuss the circumstances of a private business. In a statement cited by CBC News, however, the department acknowledged residents' and businesses' concerns and said provincial officials remained engaged with the owner and other stakeholders.
Residents' livelihoods, as well as their mental health, can suffer from these added obstacles, Mikayla Walsh of the Bell Island Support Network told CBC. "There's a lot of people afraid that they're not going to be able to get to and from where they need to go on a daily basis right now," Walsh said.
Where can I learn more?
These stories reflect other real-world impacts of fuel shortages:
• In Bali, drivers sleep in gas lines as fuel shortages shut most stations.
• In Western Massachusetts, diesel prices approaching their 2022 peak push grocery costs higher.
• In Texas, a driver questions whether to buy groceries as gasoline prices surge.
• In South Florida, a food bank's fuel bill hits $121,000 as diesel prices climb.
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