-
Motorists topped off gas tanks Thursday afternoon after learning a gasoline pipeline is southeast Texas was shut down due to Hurricane Harvey. The Railroad Commission of Texas said in a press release, “Citizens have no need to fear shortages even though prices could climb during the next few weeks until all refining capacity is back online.” -
Tim Hoppe of Griffin Fuel Transportation delivered gasoline to United Express Thursday afternoon. A second truck refilled the tanks today after unfounded rumors about gas shortages led to runs on gas stations around the state.
Keep calm and keep pumping gas.
That’s the message area gas stations are sending in the wake of a panic-inspired rush to the gas pumps by area consumers Thursday.
The run, fueled largely by social media rumors, was something area residents haven’t seen in decades.
The temporary shutdown of several refineries on Texas’ Gulf Coast caused by Hurricane Harvey, coupled with widely-spread reports of gasoline shortages and outages across the state, had area motorists flocking to the gas pumps in huge numbers.
“I’ve been here three years, and I’ve never seen anything like it. It was a madhouse,” United Supermarket Store Director Jonathan Farmer said of demand at the store’s United Express outlet. “I’d say we did triple or quadruple our normal business Thursday.”
If local gas station owners and operators have one piece of advice for the public it’s this: don’t panic.
“There’s never a need to panic,” McD’s owner Mike Dennis said today. “If we can control our panic, we can work through this.”
Dennis said that he remembers similar gas panics in the 1970s and 1980s — and pointed out that Snyder never ran out of gasoline or diesel. He said a particular station might run out for a short period, but that other stations always had fuel — and those that were out had access to more. The same applies today.
“You may go to your favorite station and they may be out temporarily, especially during this time of panic,” Dennis said.
Those stations still have access to fuel, though, and the next shipment is often just hours away. Dennis said he ordered fuel for his station Thursday and it was scheduled to arrive this morning.
As the line grew at United Express Thursday afternoon, a fuel truck delivered a load. A second truck filled the tanks early today. Farmer said the Thursday delivery was scheduled, but today’s was the result of Thursday’s run.
Dennis said that even though many refineries are located along the Texas Gulf Coast, Snyder stations actually get their fuel from several supply hubs.
“There are several points that a majority of our fuel in Snyder comes from,” he said. “Odessa, Big Spring, Abilene, Lubbock and Amarillo.”
Where a station purchases its fuel from might change, but even as the Texas Gulf Coast rebuilds after Hurricane Harvey, inland refineries have the capacity to meet consumers’ needs.
Dennis said Abilene, which is fed by a pipeline from the Dallas-Fort Worth area, which in turn is fed by a pipeline from coastal refineries, could see a drop in supply, but that the other points were well supplied.
Amarillo is fed by pipelines that are fed by refineries in Oklahoma, Kansas and New Mexico, and Lubbock is fed by a pipeline from Amarillo. Big Spring has a refinery and can send fuel to Odessa via pipeline. Odessa is usually served by a pipeline from San Antonio, but those supplies have been diverted south, Dennis said.
Although drivers should not panic about the fuel supply, they may experience sticker shock as the price of gasoline and diesel continue to climb upward.
“We’re going to see prices going up every day,” Dennis warned. “If we can control our panic, we can work through this. Prices are going to climb, but we’re going to be fine.”
Farmer echoed Dennis’ comments.
“There might be some minor changes in our (gasoline) delivery schedule, but I don’t foresee any major disruptions in our fuel supply,” he said.