PANIC struck Okehampton this week as the nationwide fuel crisis started to have its knock-on effect.

Petrol stations ran dry, supermarkets started to get low on stocks and non-emergency hospital services were restricted.

Garages in the town were predicting at least three weeks before normal services resumed if the blockade on oil depots was lifted.

Director of Exeter Road Garage Peter Kirby said it had been a manic week with people queuing up to get every last dredge of fuel.

'We sold out of diesel on Monday and unleaded on Tuesday,' he said. 'The only thing we have left is a small amount of four-star and a little saved for the emergency services,' he said.

'People are not getting uptight — they have just resigned themselves to the fact that no-one is going anywhere.'

Mr Kirby said yesterday (Wednesday) if the protesters started to let tankers through the blockade now it could be two weeks before some people got supplies of petrol and another week before things returned to normal.

'It is not going to be an early resumption of business as normal,' he added. 'The first priority will be the hospitals, nursing homes and schools and then emergency services back-up — the public will come last.'

He said drivers had come from as far as Minehead to stock up on fuel because their local garages had run out early.

Okehampton's two supermarkets reported that it had been busy and stocks of some essential goods such as bread were getting low.

'At the moment it is bit like the threat of snow,' said Somerfield manager Graham Newman. 'I can understand people wanting to stock up early but at the moment we have no problems with delivery.'

He said orders of bread and milk had been increased and although there might be a shortfall of goods between deliveries there was nothing to panic about at this stage.

Okehampton resident and local fireman Andy Gilbert decided to leave his car at home and do the weekly shopping on foot with his family.

'I am 100 per cent behind the protest,' he said. 'The Government has not been listening and something drastic had to be done.

'It needs to be shown that we will not put up will the high prices of fuel any longer. When we run out of fuel we will use our pushbikes and get fit.'

But Eric Gray from Halwill Junction said he believed the protest was a waste of time.

'I do not think it will work — negotiations between the unions and the Government is a better approach to take,' he said.

'If somebody in your family was taken ill and there was no way to get to them it would be terrible. There are 101 emergencies I can think of that people will not be able to attend without any transport.'

Carmel Coaches' stocks of fuel are expected to run out tomorrow (Friday) if there is no change in the situation at the oil depots but enough has been saved back to take two scheduled trips to Germany at the weekend.

'We have 12 coaches on school runs every day and a shopping bus to Okehampton but if we do not get a delivery of diesel this week we will be closed down by Friday,' said owner of the Northlew coach company Tony Hazell.

'Like everybody I sympathise with the protesters — fuel costs are way too high in this country and the Government is being extremely obstinate and refusing to listen.'

He said prices had soared in the last 12 months and the quicker something was done about it the better.

'We have been absorbing these increases on fuel costs for several months but we cannot keep on doing it — it has gone up by 55p a gallon since June last year and that is buying it in bulk and without VAT added.'