The oil giant confirmed that “small protests” were taking place at the Hythe, Birmingham and West London gas terminals. Three other locations in Essex – Navigator Fuel Center, Esso in Purfleet and Askew Farm Lane – were affected, as were the Buncefield Oil Depot in Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, the Kingsbury Oil Terminal in Warwickshire and the BP Oil Depot in Tamworth. Essex police said six people had been arrested and advised road users to avoid the area. West Midlands police wrote on Twitter: “We are currently responding to activists at a site in Tyburn, Birmingham. “We are working to address this as soon as possible. Delays are expected this morning. “ Protesters close Gray Inter Terminals aboard fuel trucks (Getty) Activists of Just Stop Oil, whose supporters have interrupted Premier League football matches in recent weeks by running on the pitch and tying themselves to goalposts, took to the streets preventing tankers from leaving the sites. The team claimed that more than 30 young people climbed to the top of the tankers at one location, the Navigator Oil Terminal in Thurrock. In a statement, the climate group said: “The Just Stop Oil Coalition is calling for an end to the government’s genocidal policy to expand UK oil and gas production and calls on all those who are outraged by the prospect of climate collapse and suffering. from cost-living crisis to stand with us. “Ordinary people can no longer afford oil and gas, it’s time to stop oil. “It finances war and kills people in the global South, while destroying the future for young people everywhere.” Extinction Rebellion said it supported the action, which came on the same day that energy prices for millions rose after rising costs of wholesale gas and oil. Just Stop Oil is a coalition of climate groups that has accused ministers of “strengthening the fossil fuel industry through obscene subsidies and tax breaks for new fossil fuel extraction.” “The choice: a rapid transition to a world of low energy and low carbon emissions or a social collapse,” the team said on its website. Cameron Ford, a carpenter, said he had locked his neck in a fuel tanker at the Buncefield oil depot. In a direct message to the government, he said: “They just do not understand, and other than putting my body in line this way, if they can not listen to science, then I do not know what else to do.” Exxon Mobil UK said: “Small protests are taking place outside the Hythe, Birmingham and West London gas terminals. “While we respect the right to peaceful protest, our priority is the security of our people, our neighbors, our protesters and our businesses. “We are working with the police to ensure security. We apologize to anyone in the local community or beyond for any inconvenience caused by the current actions of this group. “We have temporarily suspended operations from these sites. Our other terminals in Purfleet and Avonmouth are not affected. We ask the protesters to allow us to resume our legal activities. “ Just Stop Oil Activists Block Esso Birmngham Fuel Terminal (PA) Last month, Everton’s Premier League clash with Newcastle was interrupted for six minutes when a protester was tied to a pole. The man, who was wearing a Just Stop Oil T-shirt, entered the Goodison Park field at the beginning of the second half and got stuck in a beam, wrapping something around his neck. Separate demonstrations are expected across the country in the coming days over the cost of living crisis.
