Gas prices go up in county
By Rochelle Moore
Published in News on August 30, 2017 5:50 AM
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News-Argus/CASEY MOZINGO
Pictured is the Circle K on Wayne Memorial Drive as gas prices rise in the Goldsboro area.
Gasoline prices started to increase in the Goldsboro area Tuesday following predictions that fuel costs could spike in the wake of Hurricane Harvey.
The price of gasoline is predicted to increase anywhere from 5 to 25 cents, depending on the length of time Texas oil refineries remain closed and the extent of damage uncovered when flood waters recede, said Tiffany Wright, AAA Carolinas spokesperson.
"A lot of these refineries shut down as a precaution," Wright said. "We're really in a holding pattern. It depends on the severity of flooding and the return of power."
Record rains and flooding from the storm triggered more oil refining outages in Texas Tuesday, bringing the total offline to more than 16 percent of overall U.S. capacity, Reuters reported. Restarting plants could take a week, if not longer.
The statewide price of gasoline in North Carolina increased from $2.22 per gallon on Monday to $2.25 Tuesday.
"We saw a 3-cent uptick overnight," Wright said. "Don't be surprised what you see today and what you see tomorrow at the pump.
"The good news for us is even though we see spikes from pump to pump, we won't see it for long."
Stations along Spence Avenue, including the BP, Circle K station and Sheetz, were selling unleaded gas Tuesday at $2.29 per gallon. Stations along U.S. 117 were still selling gas at $2.19 per gallon Tuesday morning.
Bianca Platt, who stopped by Sheetz on Spence Avenue, noticed the change.
"I've been getting gas for $2.16 and now it's $2.29," she said. "It's going to be ridiculous that the gas prices are going up, but what can we do? I've got to work."
Platt usually spends $60 to fill the tank in her GMC Yukon, but she put a little more than a half a tank of gas -- $40 worth -- in the vehicle.
Platt, who drives close to 17 miles from Mount Olive to Goldsboro for work, doesn't plan to change her driving habits if prices continue to rise.
"I can't," she said. "We've got to work to live."
The length of time increased prices could continue is unknown due to uncertainty regarding flood damage at the refineries, Wright said.
Prices could push higher if more people fill up their tanks in anticipation that prices will increase.
"That would create shortages," Wright said. "Our supply is there. We just have to make sure supplies don't run out."
Increased gas prices could happen quickly or over the next few weeks, she said.
"It's not just affecting us," Wright said. "It's happening all over the United States. That's what you have when you have a natural disaster and refineries are at risk."
The price of gasoline typically increases during Labor Day weekend, due to increased travel during what's considered the final summer travel weekend of the year.
"We expect it to be a busy Labor Day and, unfortunately, gas prices are going to be high because of Hurricane Harvey," Wright said.
By mid-September, gasoline prices start to drop and gas stations make the switch to winter-fuel blends, which cost less at the pump.