Bali's gas lines stretch toward the airport
A news.com.au report explains how tanker trouble, bad weather and panic buying disrupted fuel supplies across the holiday island.
Why this story? The video opened at a pace of 98,064 views a day, 19 times a normal first day on this channel (5,095).
Kilometre-long queues, stranded tourists: How Bali ran out of petrol overnight
An anchor malfunction on a fuel tanker is not the sort of problem most vacationers plan around. In news.com.au's Bali report, it is the starting point for queues of motorbikes and cars stretching far beyond gas stations.
The Short drew more than 92,000 views in its first 21 hours, far beyond the channel's usual opening for the format. Its footage shows long waits in Denpasar and Badung, with traffic backed up toward I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport.
According to the report, the tanker's mechanical failure delayed docking and unloading. Seasonal bad weather compounded the disruption, while videos circulating on social media helped trigger panic buying. A delivery problem became a much wider scramble for fuel.
The report says state-owned energy company Pertamina sent replacement tankers and directed key stations to stay open around the clock. Its closing update describes supplies gradually being restored, with residents and visitors urged to avoid panic buying and plan their travel ahead.
Amid the waiting, the video also follows a man buying water and sodas at a convenience store, then handing them out to people along the roadside. That practical gesture gets a mention in the comments, alongside one viewer wondering whether they would simply have given up and gone home.
Published on Trari
Where next?
What viewers say
Big ups to the bro handing out drinks ✊🏻 respect locals, always.
@InnerCircleFCSee it on YouTubeI think I'd given up waiting and gone home in that situation
@JamesRogers-h5xSee it on YouTube
Public comments from the video's page on YouTube
- Channel
- news.com.au
- Subscribers
- 1,390,000
- Channel views, last 7 days
- 6,268,272
- Channel views, pace per day
- 238,031 (on a normal day: 802,300)
- Video published
- October 15, 2026
- Video views so far
- 92,543 (less than a day online)
- Video views, pace per day
- 98,064
The numbers
The Bali report's opening is unusually strong for news.com.au's Shorts, with comments also arriving well above its usual first-day level.
💡 Test your knowledge
Which country is Bali part of?
Bali is an Indonesian island and province.



