Gas shortages reportedly critical in western N.C. By Steve Lyttle

Source: http://www.newsobserver.com/news/story/1231716.html

Published: Sep 25, 2008 09:24 AM

Hundreds of cars lined streets this morning as motorists in the Charlotte metro region tried to cope with an ever-worsening gasoline shortage situation.
Some motorists waited up to five hours, and fights were reported as people accused other customers of cutting in line.

Some gas stations that opened this morning with what they thought were ample supplies ran out within a few hours.

Police were called out several times to break up fights among angry customers.

North Carolina Gov. Mike Easley announced late Wednesday night that he had ordered tanker trucks from Tennessee, Wilmington and South Carolina to deliver gas to the western Carolinas. Easley said relief is coming to the area in the next day.

But it is too late to make a difference this morning.

Motorists who had hoped to awaken and find a re-supply of many gas stations were disappointed. The situation looks much the same as it did Wednesday.

At 6 a.m., about 50 cars were in line at the Gate station near the Wal-Mart store off Sardis Road North in southeast Charlotte. By 8:30 a.m., that line had expanded to an estimated 225 vehicles. The lines were even longer, spilling out onto Sardis Road North.

Charlotte-Mecklenburg police brought in a mobile watch tower, installing it in the Wal-Mart parking lot to keep an eye on customers and prevent an outbreak of violence among customers desperate to fill their nearly-empty tanks -- or, in some cases, to top off gas tanks that already were half-full.

The Texaco station on outbound East Independence Boulevard at Sharon Amity Road received a gas supply overnight, and customers lined up along both streets before 6 a.m. today. But about 8:30 a.m., clerks came out of the store and put bags over the pumps. The supply had run out.

It was the same story on Pineville-Matthews Road in south Charlotte, at an Exxon station. Clerks thought they had enough gas from an overnight shipment to last the day. Instead, the gas was gone by 8 a.m.

North Charlotte wasn't immune from the problems. Police report congested traffic on Mallard Creek Road at West W.T. Harris Boulevard -- due to customers waiting in line for gas.

And police in Matthews report the line along Monroe Road stretches for about a quarter-mile approaching Matthews Township Parkway, as motorists wait to get gas at one of few stations with fuel.

Police are directing traffic at a number of locations, where long lines of customers waiting for gas are blocking travel lanes on major highways -- including East Independence Boulevard and Pineville-Matthews Road. Matthews police were monitoring the flow of customer traffic at the Shell and Exxon stations on East Independence Boulevard at Matthews-Mint Hill Road, near Butler High School.

At 8:45 a.m., both of those stations had gas -- at least for a while.

Similar problems are being reported in the Fort Mill-Rock Hill area, in Gastonia, and in Union County. Motorists report all the stations in the Weddington-Wesley Chapel area of southwest Union County were without fuel late Wednesday night.

Abandoned vehicles could be seen this morning along the sides of roads across the area -- apparently the result of drivers running out of fuel.

One abandoned vehicle was reported before 6 a.m. on the right southbound lane of Wendover Road, between Independence Boulevard and Monroe Road. It was cleared a short time later. Other abandoned vehicles were reported before 9 a.m. on Sharon Road at Sharonview Road; Idlewild Road at East W.T. Harris Boulevard; and Eastway Drive at North Tryon Street.

Abandoned vehicles also were reported in parts of Cabarrus, Gaston, and Union counties, and in York County of South Carolina.