Florida Gasoline Shortages Continue as Two-Thirds of Stations in Miami Area Empty

A customer pumps gas at an Exxon gas station in Miami, Fla., on May 10, 2022, in Miami. AP Photo/Marta Lavandier

Gasoline shortages across southern Florida continued to plague drivers for yet another day on April 18, according to data from fuel tracker GasBuddy.com.

Data showed that nearly 60 percent of all gas stations in the Miami and Fort Lauderdale areas were out of fuel as of Tuesday morning, while another 21 percent of all gas stations in West Palm Beach had no fuel.

Another 2.5 percent were without fuel in the Fort Meyers/Naples area, according to the data.

As of late Tuesday evening, two-thirds of stations in the Miami and Fort Lauderdale areas were without gasoline, and one-third were without in West Palm Beach/Fort Pierce area, Patrick De Haan, head of Gasbuddy’s petroleum analysis, said on Twitter.

He added that there is still “plenty of supply,” but increased panic buying has made it difficult to make progress, particularly due to the “limited amount of capacity” at the Port Everglades, which has been left with flood damage following a strong storm and torrential rain last week.

Port Everglades is the primary entry point for 12.5 million gallons a day of gasoline and other energy products for 12 Florida counties, according to The Palm Beach Post.

Transport of fuel from the port has been heavily impacted due to last week’s storm, which caused widespread flooding and left some residents trapped in their homes.

Panic Buying

While speaking to Newsweek, De Haan noted that gasoline deliveries to stations across southern Florida were stopped briefly due to the large amount of rainfall in the southeast, which he said had caused some stations to “run low” on fuel.

“Now, more motorists are driving around looking for gasoline, boosting consumption, and feeling nervous about supply, so they’re also buying more gasoline than they usually do, further straining a system that’s 24–48 hours behind,” he said.

“Stations are having a hard time making up lost time, and if more motorists turn to this kind of panicked buying, it will further strain supply. If, however, motorists could delay refilling a day or two, or just buy what they immediately need, avoid filling up, stations could likely resupply themselves faster, and the situation would be over quicker,”  De Haan added.

In a statement on Monday, Port Everglades officials said that the loading and delivering of petroleum products is a “24/7 operation that was disrupted on April 12 during the unprecedented storm that flooded greater Fort Lauderdale.”

Privately owned petroleum companies at the port continue to load trucks with fuel for delivery to gas stations in 12 counties south of Lake Okeechobee in Florida, officials said, noting that more petroleum terminals became operational over the weekend.

‘Sufficient’ Supply at Port

“Now, about half of the companies that distribute petroleum products such as propane, diesel, and gasoline are delivering to retailers and other consumers,” officials said. “Fuel supply arriving at Port Everglades remains sufficient and deliveries to the consumers are anticipated to increase at a regular pace over the next few days.”

In addition, three fuel tanker ships were in port and five were offshore waiting to unload, as of Monday afternoon.

“There is no need to panic or rush to the pumps,” officials said.

In an update on Tuesday, the port said additional petroleum companies had opened overnight and the majority were now operational, adding that trucker drivers were working around the clock to resupply gas stations in need.

Elsewhere on Tuesday, the Florida Division of Emergency Management announced that it was deploying 500,000 gallons of fuel to stations in southeast Florida to help ease the current shortages.

“The state stands ready to assist our private sector partners in fuel distribution and delivery,” the division said.

The latest shortages come as gas prices in Florida have continued to rise in recent weeks, with the average price at $3.692 in the state as of April 19 compared to the national average of $3.684, according to AAA. Those rising prices are expected to continue into spring even without weather issues, according to AAA.