I Can't Believe We Still Can't Get Gas around Here...

[Teresa]

I now know just how lucky we have been in Greenville. We still have gas at most of our stations, not all of them, but most of them, and the price is dropping a little. If you go up the road to Spartanburg, it's not as easy to find it, and if you go to N.C. to Asheville, it's almost impossible. Meghan lives in Rock Hill, about 20 miles northwest of Charlotte. Yesterday there was a fairly good supply of gas in her area. Nothing was on the news about a shortage there or in Charlotte. She had checked since she is planning to come home tomorrow night. Of course, the media is having a field day and making things worse by telling everyone they may not have gas for another week, but not saying which areas are affected. When Meg went to fill up today, she couldn't find gas anywhere. The few stations that had it, had long lines and unfortunately her tank is on the passenger side of her car which was the opposite of most cars. She said the lines were formed with cars in the opposite direction and they refused to let anyone go in the direction she needed to go. She finally found a couple of cars going the way she needed to and that pump ran out of gas one car before her. After driving around and using another 10 miles of the 30 she had left, she went back to her apartment and decided to see if she would have more luck tomorrow. I finally found a station to call that was about 9 miles from the school ( I was online while she was driving) and got a really nice person on the phone. It seems they get gas each evening around midnight and run out about 6 every day. Meg is going to finish a paper she is writing and go there late tonight. The girl on the phone said for her to call and make sure they had gotten it before she came. I suggested Meghan wait, but she is afraid a lot of people will go out in the middle of the night tonight looking for gas. She just may be right. You wouldn't think that a hurricane that happened 12 days ago would cause this big of a problem, especially considering the minor damage done to the refineries. That's what happens when our supply comes from one of the major pipelines. They said last night it takes about 10 days for it to reach us, at 5 mph, once the product is put in the lines. I'm determined not to panic and go fill up my car, but it's really tempting right now!

[doxielady5569128]

That is crazy!  Too bad states that don't use as much gas can't ship their excess to the other states. As far as I have heard there are no problems on my side Nebraska or Eastern Wyoming.  That would be awful not to be able to fuel up when you needed to.  How are people getting to and from work?   If that happened here it would cripple our side of the state since so many of the communities are rural and have no mass transit or even taxi cabs!   What a nightmare. 

[Teresa]

There are actually people in some areas that are having to take time off from work. Some say they should have planned ahead, but even during Katrina, there wasn't this much of a shortage, mainly because most of ours comes from the refineries near Texas. The upstate area is seriously lacking in Mass Transit and that is also a problem (it's something that is talked about, but still a long way off). We have a fair bus system, but that's about it. In the area Meg is, there isn't much of anything. She finally found a station a few minutes ago (at 6:45 a.m.) that had gas so she was heading there to fill up. That was one out of 12 she called. Please say some prayers for those who are in serious shape over this. Meg wanted and really needed to come home (to have her car put back in the shop), but for some it is a work necessity. Hopefully it will be better by Monday.

[cheryl186]

Teresa....that is ABSOLUTELY NUTS!!!!!!!

[doxielady5569128]

That is unbelievable!!   I am so glad Meghan was able to finally find some gas for her car.  I can't evenimagine how frustrating that would be.  I honestly have heard anything about that on the news.   I would think that would qualify to be one of the top stories.   That is going to really take a toll on the people that live check to check if they are missing even one day of work!   I will definitely pray that this gets resolved soon.   

[Teresa]

Here are a few links to give you an idea of what some are dealing with. The first couple are from the Asheville area of Western North Carolina. The next are from the Rock Hill, SC/Charlotte, NC area where Meghan lives and then our area of S.C. It is getting better where we are, but it is still a long way from normal for some. As for the N.C. mountains, it is great to see other states helping them out.
http://www.citizen-times.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=200880923121
http://www.citizen-times.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=200880925120
http://www.heraldonline.com/109/story/840792.html
http://www.heraldonline.com/109/story/843618.html
http://www.greenvilleonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080926/NEWS01/309260003/1004&referrer=NEWSFRONTCAROUSEL