East Coast gas shortage

Here is a Quicktime movie of first the California refinery problems followed by Sandy price impacts:
http://hiwaay.net/~bzwilson/prius/after_chevron_fire_b.mov

Bob Wilson

 

i believe that would be unprecedented. especially considering half the legislature is either involved in insurance, or in the tank. all the best to him.

 

So what is causing the shortage? Are there pipelines that are down, are there refineries on the east coast that are down? We have plenty of fuel here in SW Pa.

 

From the North Alabama tornadoes, the gas pumps require line power. Very few (if any) retail stations have the 10 kW, gas generators needed to run the lights, pumps, and computers.

One thing I also noticed was the rapid price increase in New York state before Sandy made landfall hitting northern counties. It is a pattern suggesting someone might have seen an opportunity to make money from a fuel shortage. The neighboring, more northern states have not seen a similar increase.

Bob Wilson

 

The fuel stations are only set up to run under ideal conditions of full electrical power. Sounds like a recipe for disaster during a disaster.

 

It's never just one problem. I'm sure our local refineries shut down for the storm. I don't believe they suffered much damage so came back on line quickly.

The bigger problem is distribution. Railroad tracks are damaged. There is no service on the Northeast Corridor or Shore Line. Some places have 3 or 4 feet of sand on top of the road. Some places are still under water.

Shell & Hess announced that if a gas station can't get a delivery from their regular supplier they will deliver.

The power grid took a pretty big hit. As mentioned earlier, without electricity there is no way to get a liquid out of an underground tank.

Easy to say stores should have their own power. If everyone generated their own electricity they might have some heat & light now. How about requiring all new construction to have solar panels & battery backup?

When was the last time we got hit by a storm that flooded NYC, Hoboken, and other parts of NJ? Was it March/April 2011? People are lazy. Since we aren't in FHOP I guess I can't say people are stupid. They'll sit for hours in line at a gas station but won't take the time to drive far enough to find gas stations with plenty of fuel.

 

Having lived through the 2011 tornadoes that tore up the TVA power lines in North Alabama, Southern Tennessee, and Western Georgia:

I only had half a tank Wednesday afternoon when the tornadoes took out the power (next time, I'm headed to fill up early!) This would be enough to power the house for a couple of days and I could tell from the radio (no cable, no TV, some cell-based Internet), the power ourages ranged from just South of the Tennessee River on up into Tennessee. Also, a lot of information sources were without power and could not report their status. Then Friday evening, 'blink' came on our generator-Prius and I knew I'd have to get gas on Saturday.

Saturday morning I learned the nearest, powered gas stations were Priceville, about 35 miles away. Now for my wife's 2010 Prius, this is less than a gallon away BUT also the same amount back. So I choose the Southern route because I could drive at 60 MPG speeds.

What I'm trying to get across is:

• disasters screw up sources of information - reverting to radio means "words" have to translated into distances on a map. The change in information sources and the lower bandwidth means finding effective information is not that easy. NOTE: my other alternative was Guntersville but I could not get a clear call on whether there was power and gas there.
• bank debit cards did not work - puts people in a cash-and-carry or using a credit card or check to pay for gas, food, and other supplies. (NOTE: I carry a $20 in our Prius National Bank of Cigarette Ashes or with the registration and insurance card.)
• Prius people have range options - if I had to use our RV, 8 MPG, we would be talking four gallons over and four gallons back . . . OWCH!

I wouldn't call it lazy as much as 'in a new reality'. They have to figure out what resources are where. Then decide whether or not spending their resources in-hand will reach an area where they will have the funds to restock.

Bob Wilson

 

All gas stations should be required to have backup power capabilities. It's a public safety issue.

 

I strongly agree