Trying to fill up your gas tank but finding gas stations all out? You are not alone - Bay area gas stations are experiencing a run on fuel as Hurricane Irma continues its approach.
- Buying habits 3 to 4 times normal
- Gas trucks cannot deliver gas fast enough
- Deliveries could stop if ports close
“The buying habits right now are about three to four times what they normally are in any one day, so the truckers can’t keep up with that demand,” said Art Vetter, of J H Williams Oil Company Inc.
Vetter says there’s plenty of fuel, but with the demand so high right now the trucks can’t keep up, especially to stations that are far from ports.
“You’re going to see some sporadic outages here and there, but it’s just going to be sporadic, and once this thing levels off, there will be plenty of fuel for everyone,” Vetter said.
But there is a concern regarding the sources of that supply. The state of Florida doesn’t have any crude oil refineries, so everything comes in through ports, either by tanker or barge.
Those ports may close if storm conditions become too dangerous.
“The only other thing we are very cautious of right now is if the path of this storm, if it does come up the center of the state, or near Tampa Bay Area, the terminals may have to take some safety precautions and suspend distribution of product at that point,” said Vetter.
Currently, the Coast Guard has set the condition “Whiskey” on South Florida terminals, meaning it’s still open to commercial traffic. However, vessels that want to stay in the ports must receive permission.
Gov. Scott said Thursday in a news conference that if you're concerned you can't evacuated because of fuel issues, call 1-800-955-5504. (We've heard from residents who have trouble getting through to this number. It's Monroe County Emergency Management.)