Soaring prices, long lines and outright shortages returned to Atlanta gas stations Wednesday for the first time since the 1970s.
Although both major gasoline pipelines serving the area resumed limited pumping Wednesday evening, many consumers already had reacted to widespread uncertainty and panicked. Afraid there would be no gas over the holiday weekend, motorists got in line to pay historically high prices.
The threat of shortages came from hurricane-damaged refineries and pipelines without full power to pump. How much consumers compounded the problem wasn't clear.
"Atlanta's not out of gas," said Jim Tudor, president of the Georgia Association of Convenience Stores. Some stations might be out, "but it wasn't because there wasn't gas available. It was because there was a run on these stores."
Still, the hurricane's impact hit at a bad moment — when gas inventories were already low. Shortages were threatened throughout the Southeast in the aftermath of Katrina and prices reflected that.
Late Wednesday, Gov. Sonny Perdue declared a state of emergency and threatened to impose heavy fines on gasoline retailers who overcharged Georgia drivers. There is "credible evidence" of price-gouging, he said.
"When you prey upon the fears and the paranoia, it is akin to looting, and it is abominable," Perdue said at a hastily called news conference. "I'm frankly embarrassed for our state and some of our businesses that we have to do this."
From late morning to early afternoon, the highest area price for regular doubled briefly from about $2.70 a gallon to more than $5 a gallon. A BP station in McDonough hit $5.87, according to AtlantaGasPrices.com. Four dollars a gallon became common. There were numerous reports late Wednesday of stations' closing, or shutting down their pumps. Some stations capped purchases.
At a Midtown Chevron that announced a 10-gallon limit on purchases "due to the fuel shortage," Tim Gara pumped gas into his Toyota. "I knew it would be a problem with the hurricane. I didn't know it'd get to rationing."
Throughout the day, speculation zipped across airwaves and the Internet, via text messages and over phone lines. Rumors simmered around office water coolers, fueling the panic. One said state police were closing all gas stations at 4 p.m.; they didn't.
Wednesday afternoon, the governor and AAA told consumers not to panic. "Don't go out and top off your tank," Perdue said. At the same time, he also urged people to telecommute and discouraged unnecessary driving on the eve of one of the biggest travel weekends of the year.
The governor urged calm and expressed faith in market-regulated prices.
Four and a half hours later, he declared a state of emergency.
Others, including the auto club, advised sticking with travel plans.
Barbara Washington of Atlanta struggled with the confusing advice. She had planned to drive to Jackson, Miss., to check on her elderly parents. "Do I risk it, or do I just stay put? What do I do?" Now she plans to fly.
Even the experts didn't have answers. "I don't want to scare the public to death, because I don't have a crystal ball," said Roger T. Lane, president of the Georgia Oilmen's Association, which represents distributors. "Gasoline is in tight supply."
So in a distant echo of the 1970s, consumers were unwilling to gamble on sufficient supplies.
Queues formed — and tempers flared.
Tammy Crowe of Dallas was waiting in line at a gas station in Lithia Springs when she saw another motorist pull a gun. People had been waiting for a half-hour and were edgy when a man in a bronze car cut off a motorcyclist, Crowe said. " 'Hey, wait a minute. I've been waiting here,' " the motorcyclist admonished the line-breaker, Crowe said. The two men began arguing. Then the man in the car pulled a handgun out of his pocket, Crowe said. "It was big."
A gas station employee yelled, "You want to go to jail?" and pulled out a cellphone. The man put the weapon away and said he wanted to get back in line. "No," the employee said. "Leave." He did. Crowe heard a woman who was waiting say, "It ain't worth my life to get gas. We just need to pray."
There were at least two pieces of good news.
In an unprecedented action, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency waived pollution-reduction rules for gas in all 50 states. And by evening, both major gasoline pipelines to Atlanta were pumping again.
Alpharetta-based Colonial Pipeline Co. was pumping at 25 percent to 35 percent of capacity. Plantation Pipe Line Co. also started pumping at 25 percent. The pipelines had gone down when they lost electrical power at pumping stations hit by the hurricane.
Getting the flow back up to speed is critical, said Jonathan Cogan, spokesman for the Energy Information Administration. "This has affected everywhere along the chain, from the product to consumers. It doesn't look good."
The start-up by Colonial might seem modest, but it may help cushion the area from the worst effects, said James Williams, chief economist of WTRG, an energy consulting company.
"This will go a long way toward getting things back to normal," he said. "It's like one lane that gets started after an accident closed all four."
Of course, a working pipeline is pointless without a product to pump — and many of the Gulf's refineries still are not working. But as the storm cleanup continues, many should be able to pump out the product they had produced before the hurricane, Williams said.
"We don't anticipate running out," said Michael Barrett, a spokesman for California-based Chevron. "There is enough gasoline coming into the market" from storage tanks in the meantime.
Metro Atlantans found small ways to cope.
MARTA ridership was up, officials said. Georgia State Patrol troopers were asked to cut their driving by 25 percent. And consumers hit a gas price Web site so hard that AtlantaGasPrices.com was often too clogged to access.
To Atlantans fretting about a weekend trip, the AAA offered reassurance.
"As long as you are on the interstate system, we don't think you will have any problems getting gasoline," said Gregg Laskoski, AAA spokesman. "We are not aware of any reason for people to cancel their travel plans."
Comments