Gas Outages Popping Up In Florida After Hurricane Irma; Help Is On Way

TAMPA, FL — Are you a Florida resident tired of seeing those red bags covering gas pump handles at the neighborhood convenience stores. Don’t despair, help is on the way. The first of 10 petroleum ships are arriving Tuesday evening at Port Tampa Bay.

The U.S. Coast Guard reopened the port at 2 p.m. Tuesday. The 10 fuel vessels will all arrive within the next 48 hours. The fuel tankers have been given top priority by state officials for docking at the port. (For more hurricane news or local news from Florida, click here to sign up for real-time news alerts and newsletters from Tampa Patch. Click here to find your local Florida Patch. If you have an iPhone, click here to get the free Patch iPhone app.)

Within the past two days, there were more than 300 tanker trucks loading up fuel at Port Tampa Bay. Port Tampa Bay has been open around the clock assisting tanker truck operations since Monday morning.

The U.S. Coast Guard says only minor damage was sustained by Port Tampa Bay during Hurricane Irma.

On Tuesday afternoon, website GasBuddy showed more than 50 stations with no gas, 12 that didn't have power and another 45 where the gas products available were limited.

The site showed the following percentages of gas stations in Florida were out of gas Tuesday afternoon:

• West Palm Beach: 48%
• Miami/Fort Lauderdale: 50%
• Gainesville: 62%
• Tampa/St Pete: 50%
• Orlando: 44%
• Jacksonville: 42%
• Tallahassee: 47%
• Fort Myers-Naples: 41%
• Panama City: 13%

Watch: Hurricane Irma's Destructive Journey By The Numbers

Once the tankers arrive at the port, the shipments will get escorts by the Florida Highway Patrol to impacted areas. The Florida Highway Patrol has 20 troopers dedicated to fuel escorts from Port of Jacksonville, Port of Tampa, Port Everglades and Port Canaveral to impacted areas as soon as ports reopen.

This week, Gov. Rick Scott also waived the tax on fuel entering the state to expedite delivery to gas stations. Following the governor’s request, the federal Environmental Protection Agency has approved an emergency fuel waiver which allows more fuel to quickly enter the state. He also requested 10 states to join Florida in waiving weight and driver restrictions to move goods more quickly into the state, including fuel.

In addition to the petroleum ships inbound, a vessel loaded with orange juice along with the Carnival Paradise, are headed into Port Tampa Bay within the next 48 hours.

Royal Caribbean Empress scheduled to arrive on Thursday is now scheduled to arrive on Monday.

Image via Port Tampa Bay