I’m not trying to alarm anyone.
But.
If you possibly can it might be useful to get a few 5gal gas cans from a hardware store and fill them. Also, fill all your vehicles. If you’re just w/o power for a few days you won’t have to worry if your gas station has power to pump or not. If the storm goes to sea you can use it to fill your car(s) next week.
My main concern is this. All those refineries in Elizabeth, NJ and other places on/near the coastline up there are probably beginning shutdown procedures about right now. It takes a while for them to do that. It will take a while for them to be back online again. The pumping stations on the pipelines they feed will also need electrical power.
My experience with Katrina, 100+m from the MS gulf coast was this: There were a few gas stations that got power back quickly, within a day or two. Unfortunately due to the infrastructure damage in/around the pumping stations further south the gas pipelines from Houston, TX area and Baton Rouge weren’t working. Gas had to be trucked in via tanker truck from TX. It was reserved for law enforcement, fire and ambulance services and for the power company trucks. It was *very* iffy with availability to normal civilians for a couple of *weeks*. Even though by then most neighborhoods had power, gas was in very short supply. Everyone was ‘back at work’ but some people had trouble finding the gas to get there/back.
Just something to think about. Hopefully no one will inadvertently blow up their garage?
Good comments about the gas.
I’d like to piggyback an additional caution on your comments for people who might wind up using gas-powered electric generators to be extremely conscious and careful about ensuring they have proper ventilation to avoid carbon monoxide poisoning from the exhaust. People die every year from that while using generators in poorly-ventilated areas.
Darn Good idea — and if you’re thinking about doing it... better start right now.
Thanks for the info about the gas. My tank is less than half full... thank you for reminding me to fill up, FRiend!
Gasoline is always hard to come by after a storm.
Remember with generators the the very real possibility of carbon monoxide poisoning, always a few people loosing their lives needlessly.
Keep them well away from your house and ONLY OUTSIDE.
Another thing on generators, you'll need extra gas naturally, but don't forget oil. The smaller units 5 to 7.5 KW usually don't have an engine oil filter and you will have to change oil every 24 hours of operation, so get at least 5 or 6 extra quarts of oil.
A couple of rolls of thick plastic sheeting is helpful if your roof starts to leak.
If I might add something to the gas info....
Last year in Kentucky there was an ice storm that knocked out power to several cities. Some of the ham radio operators from our area went to help. Even though some gas stations had generators, they couldn’t pump the gas because the internet was down. Gas was there, power was there, but there was no way to access it until they got their internet connections established again.