Protests over the soaring cost of fuel spread disruption across Ireland on Saturday with many gas stations running dry as truck and tractor drivers staged a fifth day of blockades at the country’s sole fuel refinery and several depots.
Vehicles blocking traffic led to closures of the main highway around the capital, Dublin, as well as six other major roadways.
More than a third of the 1,500 service stations in the republic are out of fuel and that number is expected to grow dramatically if the roadblocks remain, Fuels for Ireland chief executive Kevin McPartlan said.
Irish police put all its officers on notice they could be called to duty over the weekend and the military was on standby to help remove the vehicles as the government was due to renew talks Saturday to resolve the dispute.
Frustration over the soaring cost of fuel led to the protests that began Tuesday and have continued to grow as word spread on social media.
Government officials, who had already introduced measures