Sandy effects: gas, power outages, e.t.c.

i was on empty yesterday, filled up

i'm set for 2 weeks minimum but.....

i live in a apartment.....

 

It's already started raining here in Northern Delaware, at least on and off since the middle of the night. Not much wind yet, though. My boss was worried that the storm was going to affect NYC and didn't seem to comprehend that we were slated for worse weather. I'm not too worried, but have a feeling I won't be going to work in the morning and will likely be working from home if the power isn't out.

 

Yesterday my spouse went to our favorite (cheap) New Jersey gas station and the price was $3.39 however the attendant said they were out of Regular and out of Middle Grade all they had was Premium so she said fill-er up...argh!

Went to Walmart yesterday, people were walking out with all the Coleman stoves etc. The Coleman lattern section was completely cleaned out. excepting a few stray mantles.

 

I'm in Pittsburgh we aren't expecting too much according to this map here:
Map of Hurricane Sandy’s Path - Interactive Map - NYTimes.com

 

I am testing my inverter after lunch. All fueled up. Most everything loose has been stowed in the basement.

 

Guess my wife ain't working tonight, no buses or trains. School's cancelled already tomorrow. I'll still be driving around at work tomorrow. *sigh*

 

after the dud last october, people were lined up returning generators at home depot they had purchased a week before bu never even opened. they are sold out again this year, we'll see what happens.

 

I've never had a generator, but there hasn't yet been a time where I was without power more than a day except once. It was in the house I grew up with, and in 2003 when one of the storms made its way up. We were prone to losing power when the one box would always blow down at the main road. After that storm, they actually put a new, upgraded box in, but I don't live there to know how well its worked long term. I will, however, keep an eye on craigslist after the storm to see how many people try to offload them cheap.

 

my town is basically carved out of a forest. every power line in town is in danger of coming down with an old tree at any time. and they do. nothing for it but to wait for the fix.

 

Sandy appears to be headed directly to the east coast oil refineries off the coast of New Jersey (off I-95). For the duration of the storm, those oil refineries will have to be shutdown. Sandy is expected to arrive in the DC metro area Monday night and leave Tuesday night.

 

The tank's filled in the car and the power inverter's ready to go if the power goes out.

 

wind is just starting to pick up a bit here. 10:35 a.m. est.

 

Yikes really getting semi-bad here too considering this is just start of it.
Expecting ~60 mph winds overnight so we will sleep in alternate room in case of trees falling.

Walter- No refineries off the coast. There is a group of refineries in Philadelphia area incl. South Jersey and then there are some in North Jersey on the Turnpike Exit 10 or so. Believe there is some tanker transfer port off shore as the supertankers cannot make it up the Delaware River.

 

Are you guys saying use the Prius to generate power for house? This is great idea. How much does this cost to implement? Do you have to have a place to plug into the house? Any Prius or Plug-in needed?

 

Here you go, courtesy of Bob Wilson.
110 VAC inverter installation | PriusChat

 

I'm pretty sure this is the article where I first read about it.
Prius: It's Not Just a Car, It's an Emergency Generator - NYTimes.com

 

...obviously due to Frankenstorm, Toyota needs to extend the Nov 5 deadline for PiP deals. 10 of 14 of the rollout states are impacted (VA, MD, NY, NH, ME, MA, RI, NJ, CT, VT).