?It?s been a rough week,? said Lucky, the manager of the Express Lane in Santa Rosa Beach, ?but we?ll make it.?
?We were out Friday for 30 minutes,? he said. ?As far as we know, we will continue to get gas.?
Lucky talks with his deliveryman every night and there has been no indication of shortages.
?We buy our gas ahead of time and ours is sitting in a holding tank,? he said.
In Tallahassee, Cragin Mosteller, Florida Department of Environmental Protection Press Office director, said fuel supplies remained steady with 172.6 millions of gallons of fuel Florida?s ports.
There?s 4.7 million gallons of fuel available at ports that service the panhandle, Mosteller said.
The difficulty comes in getting it from the port to the distributors.
?The port is open to trucks, but not ships,? she said.
That means getting additional supplies could be delayed.
Panhandle residents could experience spot shortages or long lines at retail outlets, she said. DEP encouraged residents to continue to use fuel supplies prudently while the petroleum industry assessed impacts to offshore rigs, refineries and supply terminals in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama.
Not only is there a chance that drivers will have to wait in line, they will also be paying more.
Making a rough estimate, Lucky expected regular unleaded to approach $2.80 to $3, with premium at $3 to $3.50.
?But we are taking a wait-and-see attitude,? he said as to any increase at his station.
On an average day, consumers in Florida use approximately 23 million gallons of gasoline. In an average month, fuel suppliers distribute 750 million gallons in Florida.