Nick Cannon Hosts Free Gas Event In San Fernando As Prices Continue To Climb
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) – With gas prices continuing to rise across Southern California, TV personality Nick Cannon hosted a free gas event in San Fernando Friday morning to provide some much needed relief to drivers.
Cars were lined up around the block at a Shell station in the 1200 block of North Maclay Avenue, with drivers hoping to be among those to receive a free tank of gas.
Cannon and radio station Power 106 were on hand, pumping up to 10 free gallons per car.
"You see how the gas prices are continuing to go up, and we figured, we got the first 106 cars out here, and filled them up," Cannon told CBSLA.
Eric Monreal was among those near the front of the line. He told CBSLA that he lost a loved one during the pandemic and has been dealing with some unexpected expenses.
"Thank God, I've been working forty hours a week, but things are tough," Monreal said.
A gallon of regular averaged $4.13 in L.A. County Friday, the highest its reached since Oct. 23, 2019. The average price has increased 10.5 cents over the past 14 days.
"We always see price increases in the spring, that's typical of Southern California," AAA spokesperson Jeffrey Spring told CBSLA. "But yeah, we're a little higher than I would expect at this point."
Spring says the increase is due to a combination of factors, including more people returning to work as COVID-19 pandemic restrictions ease, the switch to a summer gas blend and issues with refineries.
"If it's a typical year, prices should level off late May, early June, and then should start dropping through the summer," Spring added.
(© Copyright 2021 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. City News Service contributed to this report.)
