Gas prices continue to skyrocket
Published 1:30 am Friday, March 20, 2026
The price of a gallon of regular gasoline continues to skyrocket nationwide, and in Grays Harbor County in particular. Washington state currently has the second highest gas prices in the country.
The Shell station near the Ocean Shores roundabout hit $5.59 as of Thursday morning and both stations at Hogans Corner are above the $5 per gallon mark.
Washington state’s average price per gallon of regular has risen 40 cents in a week to $5.14, with Grays Harbor County sitting at $5.22. The national average has risen to $3.88.
According to a press release issued by AAA on Thursday, “prices at the pump continued to climb by 28 cents since last week. With the spring equinox ushering in warmer weather and more time on the road, gas prices are trending upward alongside seasonal demand. Last week’s announcement by the White House to release 172 million barrels of oil from its strategic reserves over four months has no immediate relief on the oil market as the price of a barrel of crude continues to climb.” According to OilPrice.com, crude oil prices ranged from $95 to $123 per barrel Thursday morning.
Thursday morning, The Hill’s Rachel Frazin wrote, “Shipping through the [Strait of Hormuz] has effectively halted, cutting off a significant share of the world’s oil supply. As a result, oil and gasoline prices have skyrocketed. On Wednesday, the average U.S. gas price was up 92 cents per gallon from where it was a month prior.”
Frazin added that experts do not believe that the Trump administration’s measures to bring down gas prices will have much of an effect.
The New York Times reported Thursday morning that President Donald J. Trump, speaking to reporters in the Oval Office during a meeting with the Japanese prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, said that he would do whatever was necessary to ease the crisis but that it was temporary. “It will be over soon,” he said.
Meanwhile, a handful of gas stations in Aberdeen boast the cheapest gas in Grays Harbor County at just under $4.80 per gallon, but if current trends continue, they won’t stay that way for long.
