A.G. Gancarski
As Irma looms in the Atlantic, Duval County residents remember very well Hurricane Matthew and the aftermath.
Gov. Rick Scott was on the ground locally both before and after the storm, offering meaningful material assistance to Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry and other Duval County Mayors.
Power outages, fuel and supply shortages, downed trees: all were impacts during Matthew … and the reasonable expectation is more of the same — if not worse — as Irma makes its way through.
With Irma days away from menacing Northeast Florida, Scott was in Jacksonville briefing the media Thursday.
And all of those issues from Matthew were addressed in the press conference, with fuel shortages at pumps proving to be a hot topic.
Scott noted that he had been talking to retailers and suppliers, including oil companies, and urged gas stations to stay open as long as possible in evacuation zones.
Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam earlier in the day said his department also is closely monitoring the distribution of gasoline in Southeast Florida where many stations have already run out.
“This is not a fuel shortage problem but a distribution problem,” Putnam said. “There is gas in the state; we are now working to get it distributed to areas needed.”
To that, Scott added: “We know fuel is important,” and to that end three 1.2 million gallon tankers came into Tampa today.
Usage — specifically choices made by drivers to top off their gas tanks — are creating pressures; Gov. Scott noted that at gas stations, “people are buying all the gas before the truck gets back.”
Federal waivers, including through the EPA, are allowing the state to “keep getting fuel in, to stores quickly,” Scott said.
And while gas has been coming into Port Everglades and Port of Tampa, those ports eventually will close, shifting shipments north.
“There are parts of Jacksonville that don’t have fuel,” Mayor Curry said, calling it a “distribution issue” rather than a “supply issue.”
Augmenting the fuel issues — traffic issues, with slowdowns and logjams headed north from South Florida.
Scott and Curry noted that outside of accidents, traffic is moving — and they urged people to evacuate quickly.
Scott’s rhetorical question: “Why would you want to wait?”
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Another talking point: power outages. Scott and Curry noted that they are inevitable.
“In a major storm,” Curry said, “you will see major power outages.”
In Jacksonville, tropical storm force winds are anticipated 8 a.m. Sunday, with hurricane force winds expected Monday morning.
Gulf Power does not expect impacts from the storm; they and other power companies will offer resources, and Scott is confident that those resources will come to pass after the storm.
