Petrol advice U-turn fails to halt panic

Panic at the pumps across Shropshire continued for a fourth day today - despite the Government changing its advice to motorists as fuel tanker drivers ruled out strikes over Easter.

The fuel frenzy has forced many filling stations to shut as they await deliveries, while others limited sales or served emergency services only.

It comes as the Government minister who suggested filling up jerry cans with fuel because of potential strike action was facing growing calls today to resign after a woman was severely burned while transferring petrol between canisters in her kitchen.

Diane Hill, 46, of York, was recovering in hospital today with 40 per cent burns after vapours ignited as she decanted petrol from one container to another, setting fire to her clothing.

Labour MPs called for the resignation of Francis Maude, who has faced a barrage or criticism from fire experts since advising motorists earlier this week to store jerry cans of fuel in their garages.

The Government last night changed its advice to motorists after Unite, the union representing 2,000 fuel tanker drivers, ruled out the threat of strikes over Easter.

But the rush to buy fuel has continued to take its toll with increased demand also seeing prices rise.

A spokesman for Sainsbury's at Meole Brace in Shrewsbury said the filling station ran dry between 6pm and 9pm yesterday.

But he said there was limited availability of petrol and diesel today after a late-night delivery and further deliveries were expected this afternoon.

He said: "We have slight queues so far today but we do have fuel this morning, but it's a limited supply until we get two deliveries later on."

The BP garage in Meole Brace had run dry this morning.

One employee, who asked not to be named, said demand yesterday had trebled compared with a normal day, adding that a fresh delivery of fuel was expected this afternoon.

Trench Lock 24-7 service station in Telford started serving drivers again at midnight after previously limiting supplies to emergency services only.

But Chris Brampton, from the filling station, said the situation could change again if levels became low throughout the day.

The Shell Clock Service Station in New Trench Road, Donnington, Telford, had no unleaded this morning and only a small amount of diesel. An employee said he did not know when the next delivery was due.

It was a similar story at the Shell in Sutton Maddock, near Telford, where an unleaded delivery was expected at 11am.

At the BP Service Station in Forton Road, Newport, only account holders were being served and staff were unsure when a delivery was due.

Meanwhile, a tanker driver from Shropshire has spoken of the abuse he has received from angry motorists trying to fill up at petrol stations. The driver, who did not want to be named, said he was not in favour of strike action.

The worker, who is from Telford, said: "We are doing 12-hour shifts, working six days a week and just delivering further and further away. It is putting more pressure on our driving hours."

He said he was verbally abused by a driver as he turned up to deliver fuel to a filling station on Thursday in Oxford and was forced to wait in his cab for the owner to turn up.

He added: "I do not agree with the strike personally and a lot of drivers don't. It only just got through because things are a lot worse in the south for terms and conditions."

One family in rural Shropshire is regretting their decision not to panic buy as they find themselves facing a weekend without petrol.

Victoria Royce-Williams, who lives at The Down, near Bridgnorth, said they had enough petrol left for one journey into the town and husband Paul was worried that he would not be able to get to and from work at the Co-op store in Low Town.

Meanwhile children Lucy, 13, and nine-year-old twins Oliver and Joseph, had to miss the last day of school because there was not enough petrol for the journey.

Lucy was so annoyed about missing her last day at Bridgnorth's Oldbury Wells School she fired off an angry letter to Prime Minister David Cameron criticising his 'mishandling' of the situation.

She told him: "Petrol reserves in Bridgnorth have been emptied by mass panic buying, and as we rely on credits and child benefits due to our low income, we were unable to fill up the car like everyone else. We are now stuck in rural Shropshire unable to go anywhere."

Customers arriving at Tesco Extra, Wrekin Retail Park, Telford, yesterday spoke of their reasons for joining the queues to buy fuel.

Alan Barnley, 33, an automatic door engineer of Apley, Telford, said: "I usually wait until I'm empty but because everyone has been going mad I've come today – it's crazy."

Helen King, 55, a housewife from Wellington, said: "I think the current Government has caused this through scaremongering."

Fire chiefs today urged drivers not to store fuel at their homes amid fears lives could be put at risk from explosions.

John Redmond, deputy chief fire officer in Shropshire, said they wanted to discourage motorists from using jerry cans to keep extra petrol and diesel and added that it was illegal to store more than two 10 litres of fuel in metal containers and two five litres plastic containers.