State and federal officials are working to get more gasoline to consumers after torrential rainstorms last week damaged infrastructure, setting off shortages.
Government agencies have intervened to try to address a severe gasoline shortage in Florida, where last week’s torrential rain storms and floods damaged critical infrastructure and left gas stations in the state’s southeast without fuel.
The Environmental Protection Agency has stepped in to help Florida increase gasoline supplies, while the state was delivering fuel directly to the areas where the shortage is most acute.
Karine Jean-Pierre, the White House press secretary, said at a briefing on Thursday that the E.P.A. was “quickly processing” a request from Florida “to expand the available supply of gas in the region” and that it was ready to provide additional help if requested.
“We are closely monitoring the situation in Florida right now,” she said, adding that the Biden administration had “been in touch with the state to offer assistance.”
Storms battered parts of southeastern Florida for several days, bringing up to two feet of rain. Gov. Ron DeSantis declared a state of emergency in Broward County, which includes Fort Lauderdale, as motorists were trapped in floods, travelers were stranded inside a shuttered international airport and residents were evacuated from their inundated houses by boat.
The flooding also hit the Port Everglades seaport, which processes 40 percent of the state’s fuel, hindering distribution and causing demand to spike amid the shortages, the Florida Division of Emergency Management said on Thursday.
Florida has requested an E.P.A. waiver that would allow gas stations to sell a blend of fuel not normally available in warmer months when its evaporation qualities can worsen smog.
On Friday, the Florida commissioner of agriculture, Wilton Simpson, said the E.P.A. waiver for only Broward County was not enough, and he wanted it expanded to more than 30 other counties where there are distribution routes and ports, which would allow the existing stocks of winter fuels to be used throughout the state and “head off potential fuel disruptions in other areas of our state.”
The statement said it would give Florida’s fuel industry greater flexibility and allow more fuel to be available to consumers. The rule would allow the use of winter gasoline beyond May.
“Floridians need fuel now,” he said.
GasBuddy, an app and blog that shows prices at stations and tracks supplies, activated its availability tracker to help drivers find fuel.
As of Thursday afternoon, according to the app, 47 percent of gas stations in Miami and Fort Lauderdale were without fuel.
Florida has announced other measures to meet the increased demand for gas.
Since the flooding at Port Everglades slowed fuel distribution, the state has delivered 1 million gallons of fuel to commercial gas stations in the area, with law enforcement escorts for supply trucks to expedite delivery, the emergency management division said.
Work was also progressing to bring Port Everglades fully back online, the seaport said. As of Thursday, the seaport was dispensing an estimated 9.1 million gallons of fuel every day, the department said, meaning that it is about 70 percent operational.
Fuel was also being extracted from Port Canaveral and Tampa, it said.
Lisa Friedman contributed reporting.
April 22, 2023 at 04:03AM
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After Too Much Rain, Too Little Gas in South Florida's Stations - The New York Times
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