Ohio Gas Station Wasn't Selling Gas for $9.99. Here's What Happened
Closer investigation reveals that the issue was a gas shortage rather than a surge in prices for the Buckeye State.
A social media post claiming gas was being sold for $9.99 per gallon in Ohio was actually caused by the station being out of fuel, according to Newsweek's findings, rather than the state experiencing the dire effects of the Iran war. Gas prices have risen nationwide since the war began on February 28, soaring around 50 percent to $4.48 as of Sunday, according to AAA.
This surge has put significant pressure on consumers and presented a political challenge for Donald Trump’s party, which is already struggling in the upcoming election. The X post, viewed over 770,000 times, depicted diesel at $6.89 and regular gas at $9.99, indicating prices over twice the national average and more expensive than diesel usually priced $2 higher.
Newsweek reached out to the poster, Tom Renz, an Ohio-based lawyer and political commentator, for further details. Ohio's gas prices have surged since the Iran war started, with the statewide average climbing from $2.76 days before the first U.S.-Israeli strikes in Operation Epic Fury on February 28 to $4.53 per gallon, a 64 percent increase.
However, the photos posted on Saturday did not indicate that gas was being sold for $9.99 in Ohio. The photos showed a road sign pointing to Genoa (8 miles) and Elmore (3 miles) in Ottawa County, Ohio, suggesting the image was taken at a Sunoco gas station near Elmore. Following the backlash over the discrepancy, the poster clarified that he captured the pictures near the Ohio turnpike exit near Elmore.
Newsweek identified the station at 4541 US-20, Gibsonburg, OH 43431, United States. On Sunday, a station employee explained that the $9.99 sign was due to the gas tank being empty. Similar tactics were used by stations in 2021 after the Colonial Pipeline hack, which disrupted fuel supplies to the East Coast, Reuters reported. GasBuddy’s Patrick De Haan explained that the three-digit limit on the displays caused stations to show $9.99 when they ran out of diesel.
The poster later acknowledged this possibility, questioning why gas stations were selling out when he had never observed such a situation before. The ongoing supply crisis has not yet led to widespread shortages, but concerns about fuel availability are mounting.
Written by urgent.news from Newsweek's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
