from the horses mouth:
Per a customer of mine in LI. Many gas stations still do not have electricity. Also, many of the tanks at gas stations were flooded with sea water. Many of the pumps need to be replaced because of sea water corrosion. There is plenty of fuel in the storage terminals. The problem is there are only 25-50% of the stations open for business as usual. Therefore, the long lines at the places that are open.
If they took off the damn "anti gouging" price controls, the situation would be fixed within hours. Station owners would put up ads on Craigslist asking for people with high-capacity generators to come over, the stations with undamaged pumps but no power would re-open, fuel trucks would drive over from PA or upstate NY if that's what it took. Gas might go to $6/gal for a while, but then decline.
When does the guy who walks to the gas station with an empty container get to fill up?