Only one actually, the Colonial. It was shut down due to a fire and prior to that it was running at reduced rates due to the refinery outages caused by Ike.
Posted on 09/25/2008 7:23:52 AM PDT by Between the Lines
Hundreds of cars lined streets this morning as motorists in the Charlotte metro region tried to cope with an ever-worsening gasoline shortage situation.
Some motorists waited up to five hours, and fights were reported as people accused other customers of cutting in line.
Some gas stations that opened this morning with what they thought were ample supplies ran out within a few hours.
Police were called out several times to break up fights among angry customers.
North Carolina Gov. Mike Easley announced late Wednesday night that he had ordered tanker trucks from Tennessee, Wilmington and South Carolina to deliver gas to the western Carolinas. Easley said relief is coming to the area in the next day.
But it is too late to make a difference this morning.
Motorists who had hoped to awaken and find a re-supply of many gas stations were disappointed. The situation looks much the same as it did Wednesday.
At 6 a.m., about 50 cars were in line at the Gate station near the Wal-Mart store off Sardis Road North in southeast Charlotte. By 8:30 a.m., that line had expanded to an estimated 225 vehicles. The lines were even longer, spilling out onto Sardis Road North.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg police brought in a mobile watch tower, installing it in the Wal-Mart parking lot to keep an eye on customers and prevent an outbreak of violence among customers desperate to fill their nearly-empty tanks -- or, in some cases, to top off gas tanks that already were half-full.
The Texaco station on outbound East Independence Boulevard at Sharon Amity Road received a gas supply overnight, and customers lined up along both streets before 6 a.m. today. But about 8:30 a.m., clerks came out of the store and put bags over the pumps. The supply had run out.
It was the same story on Pineville-Matthews Road in south Charlotte, at an Exxon station. Clerks thought they had enough gas from an overnight shipment to last the day. Instead, the gas was gone by 8 a.m.
North Charlotte wasn't immune from the problems. Police report congested traffic on Mallard Creek Road at West W.T. Harris Boulevard -- due to customers waiting in line for gas.
And police in Matthews report the line along Monroe Road stretches for about a quarter-mile approaching Matthews Township Parkway, as motorists wait to get gas at one of few stations with fuel.
Police are directing traffic at a number of locations, where long lines of customers waiting for gas are blocking travel lanes on major highways -- including East Independence Boulevard and Pineville-Matthews Road. Matthews police were monitoring the flow of customer traffic at the Shell and Exxon stations on East Independence Boulevard at Matthews-Mint Hill Road, near Butler High School.
At 8:45 a.m., both of those stations had gas -- at least for a while.
Similar problems are being reported in the Fort Mill-Rock Hill area, in Gastonia, and in Union County. Motorists report all the stations in the Weddington-Wesley Chapel area of southwest Union County were without fuel late Wednesday night.
Abandoned vehicles could be seen this morning along the sides of roads across the area -- apparently the result of drivers running out of fuel.
One abandoned vehicle was reported before 6 a.m. on the right southbound lane of Wendover Road, between Independence Boulevard and Monroe Road. It was cleared a short time later. Other abandoned vehicles were reported before 9 a.m. on Sharon Road at Sharonview Road; Idlewild Road at East W.T. Harris Boulevard; and Eastway Drive at North Tryon Street.
Abandoned vehicles also were reported in parts of Cabarrus, Gaston, and Union counties, and in York County of South Carolina.
Gee, brings back so many memories to see the smiling face of Jimmy here. Those were the days........
Refinery shutdown for Gustav and Ike put kinks in the hose. But we definitely need a bigger hose, and full.
This doesn't explain the shortage in the Charlotte area. The Paw Creek terminals are located in Charlotte right on the Colonial piptline.
...and related to that, you could get gasoline from refineries elsewhere at a greater cost, but laws are in place to prevent you from being able to pay more to get gasoline from elsewhere (aka, “price gouging”), so the voters have decided it’s better to have no gasoline at all than to get it at a higher price from places that have it.
If these people would only inflate their tires, we wouldn't be in this mess. When will they learn!
Thanks. I did not even think about that angle.
There was an article posted yesterday about some shortages in the Dallas area. Can't find the article since the search isn't working.
Same in Colorado, but I think we don't get much Gulf gas.
And why are there no lines, shortages, or high prices in Pennsylvania?
Because different places mandate different gasoline blends. So if a hurricane disrupts Gulf refiners when they were about to brew a batch of your state's blend, then you are out of luck.
It would make too much sense for the state to suspend the requirements so that any state's blend could be sold in NC.
This Week In Petroleum {lowest gasoline stock level in 40 years}
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2089437/posts
Also a fire temporarily shut down the only pipeline serving the greater area. The fire would have been no big deal except stock level were already very low.
Check out the link: Perdue Says Gas Panic is Self-Induced
Amen! ECON 101 = Price controls ALWAYS produce a shortage. Amazing how everyone (politicians especially) seem surprised when this happens. It's a no brainer. If you want the gas, you gotta let the price rise. Fear of criminal charges for "gouging" is driving the shortage - it's de facto price control by fear.
Fact Sheet: Increasing Fuel Supply in the Aftermath of Hurricanes Gustav and Ike
http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2008/09/20080915-7.html
The EPA has waived certain fuel requirements in order to make it easier to use the supplies we have domestically and increase flexibility in what we can import. This waives requirements for gasoline sold or distributed in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, part of Ohio, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia.
After Hurricane Ike, gasoline supplies are tight in North Texas
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/texassouthwest/stories/DN-gasoline_24bus.ART0.State.Edition2.26b6f66.html
September 24, 2008
Hurricane Ike is hitting North Texas gasoline stations hard this week – causing delays in fuel shipments and spot shortages.
Drivers should expect more frequent shortages in the next two weeks as the Texas Gulf Coast's refining capacity continues to come back online, fuel distributors said Tuesday.
Well, this will have some sort of effect on national consumption.
Right?
“Also a fire temporarily shut down the only pipeline serving the greater area.”
That probably explains why it was a newsworthy local problem.
Shame on the journalist for not bothering to mention it.
Ike caused the shutdown of thousands of oil wells and the shutdown of the refineries. As of yesterday on 60% of the oil wells had been reopened. I don’t know about the refineries.
Only one actually, the Colonial. It was shut down due to a fire and prior to that it was running at reduced rates due to the refinery outages caused by Ike.
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