‘Some areas facing food, commodities crisis in lockdown’

KUWAIT CITY, April 11: The supply of gas cylinders in Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh and Mahboula is normal and there is no shortage, reports Al-Anba daily quoting an official source from Kuwait Oil Tankers Company (KOTC). While affirming that the company arranged additional deliveries to the abovementioned areas in the last two days, the source explained the imposition of total lockdown in Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh made the residents in the area panic so there was a stampede as people rushed to the cooperative society to purchase gas cylinders.

He pointed out the exceptional circumstance in the area prompted Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh Cooperative Society, in coordination with the security authorities, to open more than one point of sale in order to cover the increasing demand for gas cylinders and more points of sale will be opened in the coming days.

He denied the alleged shortage of gas cylinders, clarifying the stampede shown in video clips posted on social media was the result of panic among people after the total lockdown was imposed in the area, in addition to the changing lifestyle of many people who stay at home throughout the day and eat all meals in one place, which caused the stampede and the rush. He expects the situation to calm down in the next two days in terms of the distribution of gas cylinders.

He added the supply of gas cylinders in the country is normal – more or less 50,000 per day, stressing that the cooking gas manufacturers in Shuaiba and Umm Al-Aish have the capacity to produce more than 150,000 cylinders a day.

Meanwhile, Mahboula witnessed crowds as more than 1,000 people stood in line waiting for cooking gas delivery vehicles that could not meet all their needs; while the area is still suffering from a suffocating crisis and congestion to obtain goods and products due to the entry and exit ban. Treasurer of Fintas Cooperative Society Owais Al-Subaie announced the allocation of four gas delivery vehicles to Mahboula as it is a subsidiary of the cooperative, with the aim of providing good service and dispelling concerns about gas shortage in the area.