Gas stations in Florida are already running out of fuel. Hurricane Milton could cause even more trouble

new York
CNN
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Gas stations in many areas of Florida are running out of gas as residents prepare for Hurricane Milton.

Demand for gasoline has surged as some residents in Milton’s path try to fill up before evacuating. Others who want to stay put are trying to fill their gas tanks so they can power their generators if they are without power for an extended period of time.

Gas price tracking service GasBuddy reported that 14.5% of gas stations across the state were without fuel as of Tuesday morning, a dramatic increase from just 3% on Monday. With about 7,500 gas stations in the state, this estimate means there are currently more than 1,000 gas stations without gas.

The situation was far worse in areas where forced evictions were ordered. In Fort Myers, on the state’s Gulf Coast, 70% of gas stations were without gas Monday evening.

“It’s a testament to how fast the storm is moving and how intense it is,” said Patrick De Haan, energy analyst at GasBuddy. “It’s a game changer.”

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis sought to curb panic buying and drivers filling up tanks, which can worsen shortages. DeSantis assured residents in a news conference Tuesday morning that the state is working to get emergency supplies of gasoline to gas stations that have run out.

He said the state’s reserves include 110,000 gallons of gasoline and 268,000 gallons of diesel fuel. And he said while those reserves are decreasing because of the distribution that has already occurred, 1.2 million gallons of both fuels are currently on their way to the state. DeSantis said 27 tanker trucks were escorted by the Florida Highway Patrol to deliver fuel to gas stations in the storm’s expected impact area.

“We have been sending fuel over the last 24 hours as gas stations were empty,” he said at a news conference early Tuesday. “There is no shortage of fuel. The fuel continues to enter the state of Florida. But the queues at gas stations are long and they are running out of gas quicker than usual.”

Once the storm passes, there could continue to be problems getting gasoline into the state if the Port of Tampa is damaged by the hurricane, gasoline market experts say. That’s because this port is an important transshipment point for much of the gasoline that enters the state by tanker or barge.

From there, it is distributed throughout the rest of the state via tanker trucks and a pipeline that runs to the Orlando area. However, there are no pipelines transporting gasoline from refineries on the Gulf Coast or northern states as the fuel is transported throughout much of the rest of the country.

“The Port of Tampa is critical to serving much of the state,” said Tom Kloza, global head of energy analysis at OPIS, which tracks gasoline prices for AAA. “It is one of the most important parts of the fuel infrastructure in the country. I would be hard pressed to find a market that is more dependent on water supplies and more vulnerable to hurricanes and storm surges.”

The port was closed due to the storm, although DeSantis said it currently had fuel at its stations and was continuing operations even before the storm. It could be a while before it reopens to tankers and barges after the storm, said Andy Lipow, oil analyst at Lipow Oil Associates.

“They will not return until the storm passes and the Coast Guard searches for debris sunk in the channel and reinstalls the navigation buoys,” he said.

And the real fear is that the hurricane and storm surge could cause significant damage to the port.

“We anticipate, that doesn’t mean it will happen, but we anticipate there will be significant damage to the Port of Tampa, so we anticipate there will be a significant disruption to their ability to get fuel.” received,” DeSantis said. He said state officials are working to make other arrangements to bring fuel into the state.