CITRUS COUNTY, Fla. — A hummer in Citrus County caught fire on Wednesday morning right after the driver filled up four five-gallon gasoline containers.
According to fire rescue officials, the vehicle caught fire around 10:52 a.m. right after the driver filled up the four gas containers at the Texaco Food Mart on W. Grover Cleveland Blvd.
The Florida State Fire Marshal’s Office will determine the official cause of the fire.
Officials said one person in the vehicle was injured and refused transport for treatment against medical advice.
The fire was out by 11:09 a.m. Citrus County Fire Rescue says the Florida Department of Environmental Protection was notified and will coordinate cleanup of the fuel spill.
No other information is available at this time.
The situation comes amid problems with people panic buying gasoline after one of the country’s largest gasoline suppliers, Colonial Pipeline, shut down over the weekend due to a cyberattack.
While the pipeline supplies about 45% of fuel along the east coast, Mark Jenkins with AAA says 90% of Florida's gas comes on cargo ships through ports and imports from other countries.
Governor Ron DeSantis declared a state of emergency Tuesday night, stating the disruption of the Colonial Pipeline operations poses a “significant and immediate threat” to fuel delivery to Florida.
Officials have been urging Floridians not to hoard gasoline. A surge in panic buying has caused some shortages in the Tampa Bay area.
