Sri Lankan police said on Sunday two men collapsed and died while waiting in separate queues to secure fuel amid sky-rocketing prices leading to record inflation.

The men, in their seventies, died while they were waiting for petrol and kerosene oil in two different parts of the country, said police spokesman Nalin Thalduwa.

For weeks people have been queuing up at pumps, often for hours, and the country has been under rolling power cuts. “One was a 70-year-old three-wheeler driver who was a diabetic and heart patient while the second was a 72-year-old, both had been waiting in line for about four hours for fuel,” Thalduwa said.

On Sunday, Sri Lanka suspended operations at its only fuel refinery after crude oil stocks ran out. Use of kerosene oil has increased after low-income families began shifting away from cooking gas due to price hikes.