Florida Gas Stations Run Out of Fuel Ahead of Hurricane Milton

Several Florida gas stations near Tampa have run out of fuel as people evacuate before Hurricane Milton’s arrival.
On Tuesday morning, Milton was downgraded to a Category 4 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 145 miles per hour, according to the most recent National Hurricane Center (NHC) update. The storm weakened slightly after hitting Category 5 status on Monday. Forecasts show Milton making landfall in Tampa on Wednesday night or early Thursday morning, but the expected wind speeds and exact location of landfall are still uncertain.
Officials are urging people to heed evacuation orders, as Milton is expected to be the first hurricane to directly hit the Tampa area in over 100 years. Photos and videos on social media show highways and interstates clogged with cars as people try to flee the areas likely to be hardest hit by the storm.
The mass evacuations have depleted several gas stations of their available fuel. GasBuddy, a company that tracks gas availability, shows dozens of gas stations near the Tampa area as having limited fuel. An employee at the Wawa at 25155 Maren Way told Newsweek that the station was out of gas but was expecting a truck delivery sometime on Tuesday. The RaceTrac in Wesley Chapel also confirmed that it was out of gas.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis assured Floridians that the state didn’t have a fuel shortage at a press conference on Tuesday morning, and that officials are working to deliver that fuel to the stations in need.
“There is no fuel shortage,” DeSantis said. “Fuel continues to arrive in the state of Florida by port and what we’re doing to bring it in on the ground. But lines at gas stations have been long. Gas stations are running out quicker than they otherwise would. And that is causing the state of Florida to help assist with the mission to be able to get fuel to the gas stations.”
DeSantis also said that Milton was moving slower than originally expected, and that the storm could slightly change its path to hit north or south of Tampa.
“Wherever it makes landfall, there’s going to be impacts far beyond what the cone actually shows,” he said.
Tampa has endured impacts from hurricanes but has not sustained a direct hit for over 100 years. Since the last hurricane made landfall in 1921, National Weather Service (NWS) meteorologist Keily Delerme previously told Newsweek that lots of changes have taken place in Tampa since then. The city is now home to a much higher population and more infrastructure.
Milton’s path will likely take the storm across Florida, with widespread impacts affecting coastal regions of Georgia and South Carolina.