Government agencies have stepped in to try to address severe gasoline shortages in Florida, where storms and heavy rain flooding last week destroyed critical infrastructure and left gas stations in the southeast of the state without fuel.
The Environmental Protection Agency has stepped in to help Florida increase gasoline supplies, while the state has been delivering the fuel directly to areas where shortages are severe.
Karen Jean-Pierre, the White House press secretary, said in a statement instructions on Thursday that the EPA was “rapidly processing” a request from Florida to “expand available gas supplies in the region” and was prepared to provide additional assistance if requested.
“We are watching the situation in Florida very closely right now,” she said, adding that the Biden administration “has been in contact with the state to provide assistance.”
The storms battered parts of Southeast Florida for several days, bringing up to 2 feet of rain. Gov. Ron DeSantis declared a state of emergency in Broward County, which includes Fort Lauderdale, where motorists were trapped in flooding, travelers were stranded inside a closed international airport and residents were evacuated from flooded homes by boat.
The flood also hit the Seaport Everglades, which processes 40 percent of the state’s fuel, hampering distribution and causing demand to soar amid shortages, according to the Florida Department of Emergency Management. He said on Thursday.
Florida has requested an EPA waiver that allows gas stations to sell fuel blends that are not normally available in the warmer months when evaporative properties exacerbate smog.
On Friday, Florida Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson said the EPA’s exemption for Broward County alone wasn’t enough, and he wanted to expand it to more than 30 other counties where there are distribution roads and ports, which would allow existing stockpiles of winter fuel to be used across the state. and “avoid potential fuel disruptions in other areas of our state.”
Statement He said It would give Florida’s fuel industry more flexibility and allow more fuel to be available to consumers. The rule will allow the use of winter gasoline after May.
“Floridians need fuel now,” he said.
GasBuddy, an app and blog that displays prices at stations and tracks supplies, has activated an availability tracker to help drivers find fuel.
As of Thursday afternoon, According to the application, 47 percent of gas stations in Miami and Fort Lauderdale were without fuel.
Florida announced other measures to meet the growing demand for gas.
Since flooding in Port Everglades slowed fuel distribution, the state has been delivering one million gallons of fuel to commercial gas stations in the area, with Law enforcement escorts for supply trucks to speed up delivery, the emergency management department said.
Work is also progressing to fully restart Port Everglades, the port said. As of Thursday, the ministry said, the seaport was dispensing an estimated 9.1 million gallons of fuel per day, which means it is operating at about 70 percent capacity.
It added that fuel is also being extracted from Port Canaveral and Tampa.
Lisa Friedman Contribute to the preparation of reports.
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