The Hydrogen Fuel Cell Partnership (H2FCP) said stations were unavailable across the state following a supply disruption that began in February 2026.
Its map of refuelling infrastructure showed that 32 sites were currently offline as of 23 March, despite some Iwatani-operated stations having been scheduled to receive gaseous hydrogen supplies on 12 March.
The disruption follows a late-February incident in which one person died, and another was injured when a compressed hydrogen trailer exploded in the City of Colton in San Bernardino County.
According to local media reports, the victims were servicing a truck hauling the trailer owned by oil and gas firm Pilot Company when it exploded. The cause of the explosion has not been confirmed.
After safety incidents, hydrogen trailers are typically withdrawn from service across operators while manufacturers investigate the cause. The model of the trailer involved in the explosion is unconfirmed.
Only 20 stations are confirmed to be still operational across California. According to H2FCP’s live map, all but one of which rely on liquid hydrogen rather than a gaseous supply.
The trade group is advising hydrogen fuel cell vehicle drivers to plan their refuelling by checking station availability before travelling.
“Stations not directly affected by the supply disruption may experience higher-than-normal demand,” it said.
According to the California Air Resources Board, there were over 14,000 registered fuel cell vehicles in the state by April 2025.
The disruption highlights the fragility of hydrogen refuelling logistics, particularly for stations dependent on delivered gaseous hydrogen.
A similar disruption occurred in 2024, when a tube trailer fire at Linde’s Leuna plant in Germany forced large parts of the refuelling network offline.
The fire occurred at the end of August and saw large portions of the German refuelling network offline, and hydrogen train operators switched back to diesel. Although by the end of November the situation had largely stabilised, supply was still strained at some refuelling stations.
How a tube trailer fire exposed Germany’s fragile hydrogen refuelling supply chain
On the morning of August 26 2024, a fire broke out at the Leuna Chemical Complex – some 30km west of Leipzig. According to local news outlets, it became clear early on that a hydrogen explosion was responsible.
Despite the dramatic dark smoke billowing from the site after around 8am local time, the fire had been extinguished by midday. Thankfully, no injuries or fatalities were reported. Operations at the complex were also unaffected.
The incident occurred on the premises of Linde, which operates several grey hydrogen production plants on the site. According to the complex’s infrastructure owner and operator, InfraLuena, a hydrogen tube trailer had exploded…
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