[frankthetank]

ELI...i've been biking everywhere the last few days. Screw the automobile (I'll be talking differently in December!).
Airline~I just read an article out of Tallahassee that talked about 2 mechanics for Pascagoula Refinery and how they were looking for generators for themselves. They had no idea what was going on with Cheveron Refinery and weren't sure if they still had jobs.
Thats reassuring.
IF you've been here long enough, you should already have..."reserves"....

[thorn]

Do a google news search: link
Looks like more talk about rationing in the news

[retiredguy]

Hey Specop, looks like the dudes who removed all of the guns and ammo from the Walmart in NO are locked and loaded, too.
The thin veneer of socialibility tends to rub off pretty easily, eh? Especially when hungry and thirsty.
I'll check out the gas stations as I walk to do my errands this morning.

[Olaf]

Well, have to say I am a bit concerned. My wife and I have been property searching with plans to build a new homestead of sorts. If this is not a short term energy cost spike, and turns into more, I fear our plans for that will be scrapped due to it being too expensive. This worries me greatly because I just don't see us being able to sustain ourselves on our little acre of property we currently own. My wife is feeling this too and is having to eat a bit of crow after disagreeing with me so long about the unstableness of it all and impending peak oil. She only just recently came around, and now fears I convinced her too late.

Gas here is $2.99 and rising for regular. The NYS thruway is actually getting lots more gas business because apparently they can only change their prices once a week. So as I was driving into work I saw a couple of stations that were 30 cents less than everywhere else.
Just to be a little more prepared, my wife and I DID stock up on some extra food and general supplies yesterday. Enough for a short term problem, but not long term.
There have been a few gas station closures around here.
My wife witnessed National Guardsman stocking up at BJ's with crates of stuff. That I thought was weird.

I also think it is important to note, besides valiant individual efforts by people on the ground, this situation appears to be being handled very badly. Wow, I guess we could just have never imagined that a city surrounded by water and protected by levees in hurricane belt would need a plan for flooding and storm evacuation.
If this is how our government deals with all the future issues, we've got some serious problems.

[Leanan]

Even the Cornucopians are worried now. Gasoline Futures Surge, Oil Prices Climb
$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', '"')Depending on what we learn in the next few days this may be the biggest oil-supply shock since the 1970s. We are now in the days of reckoning," said Cambridge Energy Research's Daniel Yergin.

[Eli]

Frank Do not post things like this "My wife witnessed National Guardsman stocking up at BJ's with crates of stuff. That I thought was weird. "
It makes me want to hoard

[hotsacks]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('jdmartin', 'O')k, right now it seems like most of Western NC is out or almost out of gas. Most of the local stations were all closed with bags over their pumps, and I've had to put my crews on strict necessary driving only.
As for East Tennessee, it was a madhouse yesterday. At 2:00 PM the gasoline prices were at $2.75, with lines just beginning to form, but all stations open. At 6:00 PM there were tremendous lines everywhere and some of the stations were beginning to run out. I paid $3.29 for regular unleaded to get some gas for my lawnmower, and tempers were getting out of control at the station. At 10:00 PM as I was returning home I passed at least 10 gas stations. 1 had a long gas line, with an attendant directing traffic thru traffic cones and another one standing guard outside the station. Another station had premium only, with the regular and mid-grades covered by plastic, and all other stations were completely closed down. This morning on my way to work all the stations I passed were closed down.

[Aqua]

link More of the same this is not looking good for the next couple of months.

[jdmartin]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('hotsacks', 'S')ounds bad for the area and for your business. It would be interesting to hear how this is affecting you and your customers.Do you provide an essential service? Have you got a backup plan to keep your trucks on the road? Maybe the mods would consider a "PO and Small Business" forum?

[thorn]

"Do not run out and buy extra gas!"
Too late!:


link

[Pops]

I didn’t see it anywhere but does anyone have an idea what if any portion of the gasoline supplied to SW MO comes from the Gulf?
I know the supply here was lower than normal before the storm.
Thanks

[lawnchair]

jd - Sounds serious.
I know you're in hilly country there and probably spread out... but I've thought about our local small-town water guys, on meter reads in an F-250 with nothing but a T-bar key in the bed. Any ability to walk more, and rationalize the walking/biking routes for meter reads? I guess this goes for the USPS too... utility tricycles anyone?

[Jaymax]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'D')o not run out and buy extra gas!

[Eli]

The Colonial Network has a branch that runs up from Houston this supplys the Midwest west. But I think things may be getting tough all over.

The supply disruption of the LOOP is a huge problem at the moment along with all the Gulf oil that is still off line.

[Rabbit]

What about asking your drivers if one might own and ride a motorcycle? You can cover a lot more meters on a Motorcycle getting 50 MPG.

[RiverRat]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('thorn', '"')Do not run out and buy extra gas!" Too late!:

link

[frankthetank]

I've really wondered how municipilaties are going to handle $4 gas. I'm sure no one budgeted for this type of number. I have a feeling the snowplows will be out a little less this winter.

No more forums..please!

[Eli]

Is that pic from Nigeria?

I am sure glad we do not have Gas shortages in the US.

[CARVER]

[sarcasm: ON]So much for: demand destruction will hit when oil/gas prices rise further. It seems demand goes up faster than oil and gas. Apparently everybody wants it now that it is expensive.
Luckily us peak oilers have prepared before the price spikes, and are now using their own strategic gas reserves and stay away from the pumps this week.
Could this get even worse when trucks can't get fuel to get food to the stores? When are we going to see people hoarding all the food and create a food shortage.[sarcasm: OFF]

Maybe it is not such a good idea to tell these people about PO now, better wait till this madness has passed (in about 1-2 weeks)
It's good that this time it is temporary.

[LadyRuby]

Note, from weekly petroleum supply report, the inventories were low for some regions even before Katrina. See where some of the shortages occuring now, seem to be in "Lower Atlantic" and "Midwest" regions, as defined below. So this was building up as a problem BEFORE Katrina, she just gave the knock out punch.
Most recent weekly motor gasoline inventories compared to August 2004:
East Coast (PADD I)-------------------96%
New England (PADD IA)---------------146%
Central Atlantic (PADD IB)------------95%
Lower Atlantic (PADD IC)--------------88%
Midwest (PADD II)----------------------86%
Gulf Coast (PADD III)-----------------101%
Rocky Mountain (PADD IV-------------71%
West Coast (PADD V)------------------91%
Finished Motor Gasoline----------------91%
Reformulated---------------------------93%
Conventional----------------------------90%

The East Coast (PADD 1) comprises New England Subdistrict (PADD 1A): CT, ME, MA, NH, RI, VT; Central Atlantic Subdistrict (PADD 1B) : DE, DC, MD, NJ, NY, PA; and Lower Atlantic Subdistrict (PADD 1C) : FL, GA, NC, SC, VA, WVA.
The Midwest (PADD 2) is IL, IN, IA, KS, KY, MI, MN, MO, NE, ND, OH, OK, SD, TN, WI.
The Gulf Coast (PADD 3) is AL, AR, LA, MS, NM, TX.
Rocky Mountain (PADD 4) is CO, ID, MT, UT, WY.
The West Coast (PADD 5) is AK, AZ, HI, NV, OR, WA; plus Calif.