Terrorist attacks in New York City and Washington, D.C., hit everyone close to home. And fears that they could hit everyone in the pocketbook created a run on gasoline at local stations.

Gas prices were in the $1.45 to $1.65 range Tuesday. While reports of rising gas prices from across the state line -- in Warren, Ohio, prices as high as $4.20 a gallon were reported -- few Mercer County stations had raised prices significantly by this morning.

At about 9:30 p.m. Tuesday, cars lined Silver Street and North Oakland Avenue in Sharon, waiting to fill up at Sheetz on East State Street.

"We got a complaint about traffic backed up about a block and a half," said Sharon police Sgt. Mark D. Yassem, who was directing cars in and out of the Sheetz lot.

Some of the early birds who were trying to fill up explained why they were waiting in line.

"Because gas is going to be $3 tomorrow," said Kim Shander, 34, of Sharon, who was sitting in her car with her 12-year-old daughter Samantha. "I kept her up even though it's a school night. I'm sure it's because they're afraid they're not going to be getting any imports or exports."

A tip from employees was why Sarah Foster, 26, of Sharon was waiting.

"When I was here earlier, employees told me gas prices are going up to $5," she said. "They said refineries in the nation are all shut down because of the plane crashes today, and we may not be getting much gas from the Middle East in the future."

The local run on gas stations reflected a national trend. As some gasoline wholesalers and retailers quickly raised prices, the nation's largest oil companies immediately tried to allay consumers' worries by freezing prices and pledging to keep distribution steady.

Some people in line at Sheetz didn't know what the lines were all about.

"I just came to get gas. Someone told me in line that it's going to be $3 a gallon by morning. They just want to make money," said Tony Conti, 73, of Sharon.

Sheetz shift supervisor Tiffany Kienast would not say if a price increase was in the store's future but did say her district manager told employees to post signs on the pumps to tell patrons not to fill up cans, only their vehicles.

Employees who did not want to be named were telling their friends that prices would be going up and to fill up their gas tanks.

Michael Rice, 32, of Sharon -- who was on his third trip to the pumps after filling both his wife's and his son's cars -- thought the whole day was a wreck. "I'm shocked at the whole day's events," he said.

"But with what happened (the terrorist attacks) I figured something like this could happen," said Rice of his belief that gas prices would be going up.

"One of the biggest stockholders in the world -- the World Trade Center -- was hit. By raising the gas prices, they think it will keep the economy going and bring everything back up to status. That's the way I feel," Rice said.

Tom Kloza, director of Oil Price Information Service, a Lakewood, N.J., publisher of oil industry data, said he expects petroleum companies to act with restraint in the face of intense marketplace jitters.

"To be raising prices frenetically in this atmosphere makes the entire situation more difficult," he said. "The last thing the American public needs to think about right now is that they need to be racing out to load up on fuel."

In Washington, the American Petroleum Institute, the industry trade group, issued a statement reassuring motorists that there is no threat of a fuel shortage.

"Fuels are flowing normally to wholesale and retail markets throughout the United States," said the API, adding that gasoline and diesel fuel inventories "are adequate to meet demand."

"Refinery production remains strong," said the trade group.