By Rajini Vaidyanathan for BBC
Being the first in the queue is usually a coveted spot, but Ajeewan Sadasivam has no idea how long he'll be stuck in this one.
Sri Lanka suspended sales of petrol and diesel for non-essential vehicles as it struggles to pay for imports like fuel, food and medicines. Photo: AFP / Pradeep Dambarage
"I've been in line for two days already," he says, as he waits patiently outside a petrol station in the capital Colombo.
As a taxi driver, fuel is his lifeblood, but Sri Lanka has no fresh supplies of petrol coming in.
Sadasivam shows us the petrol gauge on his dashboard, the arrow hovering at empty.
"I have been sleeping in this car. Sometimes I leave to go and get food, then I come back and wait… I haven't bathed in days."
He says he has no choice but to wait it out: "I have to look after my family, my wife and two children… only if there's fuel can I start running my cab and make a living."
With no international shipments of fuel coming in for at least two weeks, supplies are being sent to the capital from other parts of the island, where there are still some reserves.
But the island nation runs low on supplies.
Sadasivam is hopeful a tanker will arrive soon. As he stares out at the station forecourt, members of Sri Lanka's military stroll up and down, guarding the empty pumps.
"They've told me they're expecting a vehicle to reach tonight," he says with a hint of optimism.
"I have to wait, even if it takes a week. I can't go to another queue. It's not practical."
Sadasivam is hardly alone - the lines for fuel snake along the main road, weaving down along adjoining side streets stretching for close to 2km (1.2 miles) along the oceanfront.
It's a striking sight - four parallel queues. One for cars, one for buses and trucks, another two for motorbikes and tuk-tuks.
It's a double whammy of a wait. Before anyone can get any fuel - whenever it arrives - they need to be issued a token.
Those we talked to say most petrol stations are only issuing around 150 tokens at a time.
Right at the back of the queue, we find Jayantha Athukorala who's travelled from a village outside Colombo, expending at least 12 litres of petrol just to take a chance on finding more.
Unlike Sadasivam, Athukorala doesn't have a token - by his best guess he's at number 300 in line.
"I'm not sure I'll get a token today," he says despondently. "We cannot live without gas or petrol. We're in deep trouble."
A car salesman, he's now forced to sleep in his own car as he waits it out.
While some fuel stations are only supplying to essential services like healthcare, food distribution and public transport, others are allowing members of the public to get some - under a strict rationing scheme.
Drivers are waiting in long queues at an Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) filling station in Colombo, Sri Lanka on July 02, 2022. Photo: AFP
Athukorala says the allocated amount for cars - worth 10,000 Sri Lankan rupees ($NZ44) - will barely fill up half a tank.
With pressure on Sri Lanka's government to find sources of fuel, the government has reached out to Russia for help. A delegation is due to arrive in Moscow at the weekend, to discuss the purchase of cheap oil, and president Gotabaya Rajapaksa has written to Vladimir Putin to discuss the issue.
Passing by the fuel station, we meet Jagannathan, who has resorted to other means to get around.
With a big smile on his face, he shows us his newly-purchased bike, which still has some plastic wrapping on it.
"I'm still getting used to it," he says as he fiddles with the pedals.
Jagannathan used to work as a driver too - but with no petrol or diesel, he's stopped working, and spent some of his savings on the bike.
He said he paid more than three times the usual price for his wheels - 70,000 LKR ($312)
As Jagannathan rides away on his new purchase, we meet others trying their luck in other ways too.
Behind a queue of stationary tuk-tuks, there's a much smaller line - a group of half a dozen people waiting to buy a lottery ticket.
It moves fast, until Siri, a labourer who survives on odd jobs, buys up the remaining tickets on sale - all 26 of them.
Siri says he's bought the tickets for his family: "I have no source of income, it's hard but we have to be patient."
While some in the fuel queue sleep in their tuk-tuks and others form groups and chat to while away the time, Siri looks down at the pile of tickets in his hand.
"Maybe someday I'll win the lottery," he says, with a lot more hope than most here.
Energy minister warns over fuel stocks
Sri Lanka's energy minister has issued a stark warning over the country's fuel stocks as it faces its worst economic crisis in more than 70 years.
On Sunday, Kanchana Wijesekera said the nation only had enough petrol left for less than a day under regular demand.
He also said its next petrol shipment was not due for more than two weeks.
Last week, Sri Lanka suspended sales of petrol and diesel for non-essential vehicles as it struggles to pay for imports like fuel, food and medicines.
Wijesekera told reporters that the country had 12,774 tonnes of diesel and 4,061 tonnes of petrol left in its reserves.
"The next petrol shipment is expected between the 22nd and 23rd [of July]," he added.
A shipment of diesel is expected to arrive at the weekend, however Wijesekera warned that the country does not have enough money to pay for planned fuel and crude oil imports.
He said Sri Lanka's central bank could only supply $125m for fuel purchases, far less than the $587m needed for its scheduled shipments.
Wijesekera added that the country owed $800m to seven suppliers for purchases it made earlier this year.
It came after Sri Lanka banned sales of fuel for private vehicles until next week.
Experts believe it is the first country to take the drastic step of halting sales of petrol to ordinary people since the 1970s oil crisis, when fuel was rationed in the US and Europe.
The island nation of 22 million people is facing its worse economic crisis since gaining independence from the UK in 1948 as it lacks enough foreign currency to pay for imports of essential goods.
Acute shortages of fuel, food and medicines have helped to push up the cost of living to record highs in the country, where many people rely on motor vehicles for their livelihoods.
Last Thursday, an International Monetary Fund team concluded a fresh round of talks with Sri Lanka over a $3bn (£2.5bn) bailout deal.
While no agreement has been reached yet, the team said in a statement that it had made "significant progress on defining a macroeconomic and structural policy package".
It added that it had "witnessed some of the hardships currently faced by the Sri Lankan people, especially the poor and vulnerable who are affected disproportionately by the crisis".
The cash-strapped country has also sent officials to the major energy producers Russia and Qatar in a bid to secure cheap oil supplies.
Additional reporting by Andrew Clarance
- BBC