Lifted the blockade which led to supply problems at several gas stations in Tijuana, announces the governor of Baja

An agreement between a group of local residents and Mexican authorities ended the blockade in front of a Rosarito fueling plant that affected dozens of gas stations in Tijuana for days, the governor of Baja California announced Saturday , Marina del Pilar Avila.

“This decision definitively resolves the gasoline supply problem that we, citizens, have been facing in recent days,” Ávila said in a video posted on his social media accounts.

A group of residents of the Maclovio Rojas neighborhood in Tijuana blocked the Petróleos Mexicanos (Pemex) gasoline factory in Rosarito, which supplies approximately 235 gas stations in Tijuana, Rosarito and Tecate.

The group is demanding that the Mexican government grant its request for legal recognition of land in its neighborhood that residents say belongs to them. The community is approximately 20 miles from where the protest took place.

Ávila recognized the desire of the demonstrators, present on site since Sunday evening, to negotiate and declared that they would continue the dialogue to resolve “this complex issue”.

The announcement came amid Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s planned visit to Mexicali and nearly a week before the Mexican presidential election.

Concerns about gasoline shortages led to panic buying and long lines at gas stations across the city for most of the week. As the hours passed, it became more and more difficult to find gasoline at many stations. Drivers took to social media groups to ask others if they knew which stations had fuel. Some schools even switched their classes to a virtual format for a day to help students.

Ávila thanked residents, businesses and visitors for their “patience and cooperation” during the blockade.

More than 160 gas stations closed temporarily this week, and those that didn’t experienced some sort of shortage, said Alejandro Borja of the Tijuana National Chamber of Commerce, or Canaco.

Additional gas trucks were sent to transport gas from Ensenada and Mexicali to Tijuana to alleviate the situation.

Borja estimated that it would take days to normalize supplies to all gas stations and estimated losses at several million pesos. Tijuana business representatives had expressed concern that the problem began just before the Memorial Day holiday, when more visitors were expected in the area.

Borja said that while people might experience long lines this weekend, “I already have a feeling things will be quieter.”

In a video addressed to the media, Juan de Dios Escalante, spokesperson for the residents, said they would leave the area on Saturday and continue conversations with authorities in hopes of beginning a process to obtain their titles of property.

He also apologized to the community, but said they were not “solely responsible” for the disruption. Another meeting between the two sides is expected to take place next week.