FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Gas stations that still have fuel have been difficult for South Florida drivers to come by in recent days, but officials are promising that relief is on the way.
This is all following several days of historic rainfall and flooding that have impacted residents in Miami-Dade and Broward counties.
Officials at a news conference at Port Everglades Monday morning assured the public that this is “not a supply issue,” but a “distribution issue.”
“We have terminals here that are privately owned from the gas facility folks, so what’s happening is their pumps were inundated with water, and so they are trying to get those pumps back in working order to obviously get the fuel out of their tanks to get to the tankers and get to the gas stations,” Broward County Mayor Lamar Fisher said.
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Fisher said as of Monday morning, there are seven out of 12 terminals now open at the port and it’s just a matter of time that things are back to normal.
According to the mayor, about 1,200 trucks receive fuel on a daily basis at the port, but only about 50% are currently receiving fuel at this time.
“To offset the shortage, gasoline was brought in from Port Canaveral, Tampa and Orlando,” a news release from AAA stated. “The good news is that operations have reportedly been restored at Port Everglades and gasoline supplies in the region should return to normal very soon.”
Despite the flooding issues, Fisher assured the public that the fuel has not been contaminated by the water.
Although officials believe the delay in gas distribution will ease more each day, many gas stations are still displaying signs that say they’re out of gas.
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Those still offering service have lines snaking out onto the streets, in many cases.
“Everything’s like taped off and everyone has bags on top of the gas cans and stuff,” driver Lance Minto told Local 10 at a RaceTrac in Pembroke Park on Monday.
The disruption in gas deliveries has been caused by flooded roads in and out of flooded fuel farms in Port Everglades.
One woman told Local 10 that she had visited two gas stations and called several others hoping to find gas.
“We called another five, but none of them have gas,” she said.
While the flooding at Port Everglades hindered the ability of trucks to make their deliveries, Broward County Commissioner Michael Udine tweeted Monday that there is “ample supply of ALL fuel categories.”
Just hung up with the leadership of @PortEverglades there is ample supply of ALL fuel categories. (gas, diesel etc) Multiple ships with fuel. Everything flowing through the port today. Trucks were delayed for a few days due to flooding. They are operating now and catching up.
— Michael Udine (@Michaeludine) April 17, 2023
Officials are asking people not to panic, and remind them fuel is coming.
“Trucks were delayed for a few days due to flooding. They are operating now and catching up,” Udine tweeted.
“It’s a little annoying, but it is what it is right now,” Minto said.
To find a gas station near you that currently has fuel, visit gasbuddy.com.