No gas/gas stations closed in NY... trouble brewing..

Since Hurricane Sandy hit NY on Monday- there have been severe gas shortages in the five boroughs also including Long Island. The local (NJ) refineries shut down before the hurricane and the tanker trucks can't get through the tunnels/bridges to supply the area once the refinery opened back up they do get gas. There are 4+hour lines at stations that actually have gas, with local police personnel on hand to keep things under control. Most of the area stations are just closed now. It's getting pretty crazy- even our letter carrier told me he had a fight with the postmaster this morning who asked him to give up his fully fueled vehicle.

I filled my PIP last Thursday night before the hurricane hit on Monday because last year before hurricane Irene hit it was impossible to get gas the day before the storm . I did go to work Monday morning (left for home at 10am when things started getting pretty bad and the state started announcing 12 noon road closings). Went to work again Tues, Wed, Thurs and today Friday.

As of today I'm at one pip above half on the fuel indicator... I've been charging at home and at the Chargepoint station at work. This morning on the way in- without all the huge SUV's on the Long Island Expressway pushing 75mph, I could actually drive at a reasonable speed of 61-65mph (on a 55mph limit rd). Driving at that speed- I actually attained 100mpg for the trip once I arrived at my job this morning- the trip from home to work is 28.3 miles. I used just over a quart of gas to get to work! I figure I have enough for at least another full week of commutes to work- I also have a 6 gallon tank of gas in my shed- and two more full 6 gallon tanks at a relatives house who borrowed my generator but didn't need the extra gas cause his power came on the next day.

Last night I had to drive my mother to church, so we combined that with her usual Saturday grocery shopping and her pharmacy trip- my wife also tagged along and we did our weekend grocery shopping too while mom was in church! All on 100% electric... no gas.

Toyota has done an amazing job with the Prius, and even more amazing is the PIP!
Now that gas is scarce around here- I appreciate the electric capability of the PIP even more..

 

I also offered to drive any of my co-workers around for local errands today as long as it's within electric range- and that they pull in my parking spot at the charging station (that is always occupied all day long by ICE vehicles as soon as I leave it once my morning charge is complete at 10:15am every morning) so I can recharge for the ride home.

 

I call that smart!
I had 3 full six gallon jugs in my shed- I gave 2 away to relatives to use with my generator (which also had a full 5 gal tank before I lent it out) after the hurricane ended. Now I'm a bit nervous only having 6 gal in reserve. Live and learn- as soon as this incident is over I'll fill the other two spare six gal jugs I have, so at that point I'll have 30 gal in reserve.

 

The Hess at exit 71 on the LIE had 1/2mile long line this afternoon- the station had three police cars on the scene to keep the peace... unbelievable! I saw on the news ppl pushing their cars in the line to the pumps... they ran out while waiting in line. One guy got 57 cents worth before the pump ran dry- he said he's been waiting four hours.

If PIP's don't sell now- they never will....

 

Here's what we're dealing with...
"Man pulls gun in gas line, state troopers deployed at stations as tensions boil in Sandy's wake.."






I'm sooo glad I bought the PIP!
I can go on with my normal weekend chores thanks to the plug-in feature.