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(Bloomberg) – Gasoline stations in parts of Florida are running out of fuel as drivers race to refuel in the aftermath of Hurricane Dorian.
Independent operator Steil Oil, just 3 miles from the Atlantic Ocean in Vero Beach, Florida, has closed, but no sense of panic has been felt, said the manager. service, Doug Mull. Several dozen drivers stopped during the closing of the pumps. Another 8,000-gallon gasoline carrier was on its way, he said.
Dorian's trajectory has turned slightly south and is expected to land near Jupiter, Florida, in Category 4, with winds reaching 140 km / h. Florida relies on ships to import most of its fuel, making it vulnerable to shortages if ports are closed.
"Certainly, some people were angry, but they all came back," Mull said. "We're just going with the flow here. I think it's going to be pretty busy soon.
Vero Beach is not far from the Orlando-Daytona Beach-Melbourne area, where GasBuddy estimated that 31% of retail gasoline vendors were dry Friday morning. The pinch was the tightest at West Palm Beach where 50% ran out of fuel.
"I do not want to be the only one to be able to say that the situation will get worse, but the average driver will notice that it will be an event," said Patrick DeHaan, senior oil analyst at GasBuddy. "There is going to be a crease in the pipe" representing Florida's supply, he said.
Florida, the third most populous state in the country, is experiencing an unusual supply situation as it is not served by an oil pipeline. The nearest pipe is a colonial line that arrives in Bainbridge, Georgia. From there, the fuel is loaded into trucks for the rest of the trip.
Most species are delivered in the state by tankers and barges. Thus, when the ports are closed, the state is largely cut off from the supply.
Two tankers heading for Port Everglades near Fort Lauderdale with refined products – Ohio and Overseas Nikiski – had not changed course outside of the port on Thursday in the middle of after on Thursday, according to Bloomberg's ship tracking data.
Trucks were heard lined up at wholesale terminals – called racks – to load fuel, said Florida Petroleum Marketers Association executive director Ned Bowman.
"The lockers are backed up, but I think the offer is generally good," Bowman said. "It's successful chaos. In the end, everything will depend on the trajectory of the storm. "
(Updates information on storms in the third paragraph and service station breakdowns in the fifth paragraph.)
– With the help of Brian K. Sullivan.
To contact the reporter about this story: Jeffrey Bair in Houston at [email protected]
To contact the editors responsible for this story: David Marino at [email protected], Catherine Traywick
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