Posted on 09/07/2017 6:45:07 PM PDT by SamAdams76
Speaking at a press conference this morning, Florida Governor Rick Scott told state residents to turn to apps and other online resources, including Gas Buddy, Google Maps, Expedia and Comcast’s Xfinity Wi-Fi hotspot finder, to help them find fuel, navigate safely, and stay connected both ahead of and following Hurricane Irma’s arrival.
The lack of readily available gasoline, in particular, has been a huge problem facing the state – something that Scott admitted he knew had been “frustrating” in this time of crisis. Not only have some gas stations had long lines, many simply keep running out of gas entirely, as people prepare for possible evacuations by topping off their tanks.
Scott said the state is doing everything it can to deal with the fuel shortages, including working with gas companies, distributors, federal authorities, and other states to get more gas to the state. He said law enforcement will even be tasked with escorting trucks to gas stations so they can get there faster.
Related to this, the governor suggested that Florida residents use Gas Buddy if they’re having trouble finding somewhere to fill up.
“The Gas Buddy app is a great resource to find stations with fuel,” he stated.
Though better known as an app for finding the lowest-priced gas in your area, this solution has been spreading by word-of-mouth in local communities, as well.
As it did for Hurricane Harvey, the app has activated its fuel availability tracker, which displays the stations lacking power and/or fuel, as sourced from its user base. When you encounter a station that’s out, you can quickly note this in the app to help others. In turn, you can use this crowdsourced information yourself to locate gas stations that have fuel availability.
In an app update today, Gas Buddy says it made the icons for ‘no gas’ and ‘no power’ easier to read.
The company tells TechCrunch that it’s now seeing hundreds of gas stations across Florida, Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina without fuel. It says the hardest hit cities are Miami (30% of stations are out of gas), West Palm Beach (29%), Fort Myers-Naples (20%), Tampa (13%), and Orlando (9% are out.)
The app has seen a ton of usage following Harvey and ahead of Irma – its App Store ranking has jumped 150 spots over the past week or so, and is now in the top 50 Overall.
In addition to Gas Buddy, Scott noted that the state was working with Google to keep its mapping app updated with the most current information on road closures.
“Real time traffic information and evacuation routes is available at FL511.com,” said Scott. “We have traffic cameras on every major roadway in the state and are clearing traffic issues in real-time so we can keep people moving,” he continued. “We’re coordinating with Google’s emergency response team to prepare to close roads in Google Maps in real-time in the event that Hurricane Irma forces a closure of any roads in the aftermath of the storm,” Scott added.
Of course, the Google-owned Waze app may be more useful ahead of Irma’s landfall. The crowdsourced navigation tool is great for finding out about traffic incidents, road closures, speeds, and other hazards in real-time as well. This information is additionally fed into Google.org’s Crisis Maps, which displays other details like precipitation, public alerts, evacuation routes, shelters, forecasts and more.
The governor also detailed other resources available to evacuees, including travel site Expedia.
“If you need a hotel, go to Expedia.com/florida,” said Scott. “Expedia is working on hotel occupancy in real-time.”
Scott noted that Comcast was opening 137,000 hotspots to help people stay connected, too. These Xfinity Wi-Fi hotspots will be made free across the state for non-Xfinity customers and subscribers alike. AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile are all setting up additional Wi-Fi hotspots as well, he said.
Beyond the official recommendations from the state, Apple has responded to the crisis in a timely fashion, as it usually does. Its App Store is currently featuring a collection of must-have apps for those in the path of the storm, as well as a button that allow you to donate to relief efforts through the Red Cross. (The button was rolled out in response to Harvey, but Red Cross will certainly allocate funds as needed.)
The App Store’s “Stay Safe After the Hurricane” collection includes a number of standard networking apps, like Facebook, Twitter, and Periscope, plus money transfer apps like Venmo and Cash App from Square. But it includes a few dedicated to storm tracking and alerts, too.
These include The Weather Channel; MyRadar NOAA Weather Radar, Forecasts & Storms; FEMA’s app; and the Red Cross’s Hurricane app and Emergency Alerts & Notifications app. The offline texting app from Firechat and Gas Buddy are in this collection, as well.
Google doesn’t currently have a similar collection on Google Play’s app store, but a few hurricane tracking apps are appearing in the Trending section.
I recommend Gas Buddy to others all the time. Great service.
Tough problem, looking for gasoline. Off topic, but what about "green" car owners who have electric cars. They don't have much range, and are sh*t out of luck trying to recharge in a hurry with a storm bearing down on them, a recharge that only gets them maybe 100 miles more at best.
Much better to have a conventional gasoline powered vehicle.
Hurricane Prep Ping.
I was driving the Merritt Parkway in Connecticut earlier today and each of their rest stops have a few spaces to recharge electric vehicles. They are usually empty but I was surprised to see them completely full today. Must be people fleeing Florida heading to points further north.
I stopped by the Wal-Mart super center in DeFuniak Springs today. I needed to get a few things and was not even thinking about the hurricane as it is not supposed to affect us.
I happened to notice all the generators were gone then it hit me. I proceeded to the grocery side and all the shelves seemed to be fully stocked.
That is until I saw the isle where canned meat, beans, chili etc. normally were. The shelves were almost empty. People really do have a tendency to panic.
There is a small shortage already just due to all the Texas refineries having a small shutdown for Harvey.
I don't have much sympathy for most Floridians.
I used to work next to Coleman Powermate generator plant and they had Hurricane stock warehoused every year and trucks sitting one state north of the damage zone waiting to roll after most storms.
same thing here in South Alabama, but the “panic” has alot to do with a): The Weather Channel, and b): Local news. They are stilling telling us in South Alabama to “pay close attention to newscasts, as Irma “may” go further west, so we could still get hit”.
It’s sad. Usually they can tell off the Coast of Africa where a storm is gonna go, this way they keep Texas to Maine (their words, not mine) on edge.
Apps are what came in most helpful, for those of us who evac’d from Harvey.
The wifi hotspots would’ve been helpful. We depended on cellular (due to wifi being out win power outage).
The govt roadway websites and phone numbers were worthless.
No they can’t.
Does FL have anti-gouging laws? If so, there's your answer.
Get rid of anti-gouging laws and price controls. They exacerbate the problem. The first people will buy up all of the supplies and then the next people will wait because nobody is dumb enough to sell their product at or below cost.
No gas would make it hard to evacuate too far. Preppers would have filled up their car and some gas containers in advance of evacuation orders.
As a resident of Broward County in South Florida, I can only say that I'm amazed at how smooth things have been going. There's been a yuge spike in demand for gas and related items, of course, so there are bound to be shortages It's a logistical challenge, to be sure.
Gas stations run out of gas, of course, but they always seem to get more within a half day or so, especially the larger chains. Super-stations like Racetrac have been a veritable Godsend. Not only do they maintain lower prices, but with 20+ pumps per station, you typically get in and out within an hour or less, even when there are long lines.
Florida governor Rick Scott—who is a good friend of President Trump—has been ubiquitous, and is cementing a reputation for himself as a skillful crisis manager. He will definitely get the credit or shoulder the blame—likely the former—for his handling of this historic, once-in-a-lifetime storm.
If Hurricane Irma is going to strike Florida, it would probably be best if she makes landfall as currently projected—coming ashore directly at the sparsely populated Southern tip of the state, where she will hopefully begin to weaken before passing over more populated areas. Even so, the hurricane force winds extend in a 45-mile radius in all directions, so we're in for a rough ride regardless.
As I've stated, however, the preparation as been exemplary, IMHO. Due to the recent attention on Harvey, everyone was already on "alert", so to speak. And coming off of Labor Day weekend, it seems like everyone just hit the ground running as far as getting prepared for what seems like the inevitable.
So I think we'll all be fine here in the United States, and there will be a relatively small number of fatalities. It's incredible to see the difference that America's extensive infrastructure makes, when contrasted with that of the poorer island countries of the Caribbean and North Atlantic.
Prayers up for everyone...
So why didn’t the DoD park their 1000+ M978 HEMTT fuel trucks up and down the interstate or gas stations? Seems like a good stop gap measure. DoD can move ALOT of fuel in a week.
As a resident of Broward County in South Florida, I can only say that I’m amazed at how smooth things have been going.
__________________________________________________________
I have a summer home in Kentucky and a Winter home in Florida. The winter home is right in the predicted path of the storm. Are we prepared?
Nearly everybody in Florida is prepared as they can be. Most homes are made to withstand Hurricanes, not necessarily because people are into preparedness but because if you want to be able to afford homeowners insurance you must have a home built to not cost a lot of money after a hurricane. Perhaps you will lose a few trees and shingles but the homes are built of cinder block partially filled with cement with re-bar that goes down to the foundation. The roof is attached to the re-bar.
Our house is inline to take a direct hit. I worry, but don’t expect more than several thousand dollars of damage. I have a five thousand dollar deductible, so $5k is the worst it could be for me.
It will however be a mess for a long time to get livable again. I am hoping the storm changes course and heads east since I’m on the west coast.
Finally, as we approached 1/2 tank, we were at the point of having to turn back. As a last ditch effort I installed the "Gas Buddy" app and we were filling up within 15 minutes.
During the second half our our outward journey I saw many instances of cars lined up at empty gas pumps, ready to wait as long as required for fuel to arrive. In one case they were lined up at an obviously-defunct gas station simply because they no longer had any other options.
We ended up in a hotel room in Valdosta, Georgia (we were quite fortunate, as available hotel rooms were virtually impossible to find). Having become familiar with the city, which I had formerly thought of as a rural backwater, I have found Valdosta to be one of the nicest cities I've had the pleasure of visiting, and apparently the last bastion of true Southern hospitality.
As I write this Irma is pounding my neighborhood with the eye only a few miles away. We’ve been taking 60mph winds most of the day. Down to Cat 2 helps. I’ve got some nice furniture I hope I don’t lose to storm surge. I’m not there, I’m in KY but friend is close to the house keeping me informed on status. Not a good day, but I’m still alive. I just hope the house doesn’t blow away. It is much quicker to fix than rebuild.
I’ve got a good friend in Venice who is telling me it’s tolerable. He and his wife even ventured out into it to save a cherry tree.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.