Fuel shortage leaves some Toronto gas stations empty

A number of Toronto gas stations are cordoned off with yellow tape as a gasoline shortage has forced them to temporarily shut down.

Suncor, the parent company of Petro Canada, said a "number of factors," has led to a supply shortage.

"We are working hard to limit any inconvenience to our customers by taking a number of steps, including sourcing through third parties and bringing in fuel by truck," spokesperson Nicole Fisher told CTV News in a statement.

Dan McTeague of Tomorrow's Gas Price today says the increased demand for gas over the Thanksgiving long weekend is also partly to blame for the shortage.

"We have higher demand with lower prices," McTeague told CTV Toronto on Wednesday. He said similar shortages are taking place in the United States.

"A lot of (U.S.) refineries are down -- planned and unplanned," he said.

"It just means that with any incremental increase in demand, if you haven't got the supply to meet it, we run basically on a 'just in time' system," McTeague added.

A gas station manager at a Toronto Petro Canada on The Queensway near Windermere Avenue said he had no idea when his storage tanks would be refilled.

With a report from CTV Toronto