If you’re in New York or New Jersey and your car’s running on fumes after Superstorm Sandy, there’s some good news and some bad news.
The good news is that the federal government ordered the Defense Department to send 24 million gallons of fuel to New York and New Jersey and lifted restrictions on deliveries from foreign countries.
The bad news? Without power at hundreds of gas stations and with stranded, panicked people lining up for gas in New Jersey, gas shortages will likely stay severe in some areas, reports the New York Times. And according to AAA, only about half the gas stations in the two states are operating because of power failures.
The Obama administration Friday authorized the Defense Department to hire trucks to deliver 12 million gallons of gasoline and diesel fuel to staging areas in New Jersey for distribution to help resupply gas stations. The gas and diesel should be enough to fill 1.6 million vehicles with 15 gallon tanks, reports the government.
The Pentagon is also authorized to draw as much as two million gallons of diesel fuel from the Northeast Home Heating Oil Reserve for emergency responders to help them keep generators, water pumps and more running. The oil reserve holds 42 million gallons of ultralow-sulfur diesel at terminals in Groton, Conn., and Revere, Mass., and this is the first time fuel has been released from it.
Government officials are sure the shortages will end in the coming week, as power is restored and fuel is delivered to the region.