DAYTONA BEACH — Forecasts that Hurricane Ian will likelyhit Florida later this weekare promptingsome motorists at Daytona Beach area gas stationsto fill up not just their cars, but also gas cans.
"I ain't sure where it's going to go and they don't neither, but I'm just getting prepared," said Ormond Beach resident Robert Maness as he filled four six-gallon gas cans for his home generator as well as his pickup truck at the members-only Sam's Club gas station in Daytona Beach on Monday.
So far, the surge in gasoline sales has not produceda similar spike in gas prices.
On Monday, the average price for regular gasoline inDaytona Beach stood at $3.357 a gallon, up a half-penny from Sunday, but still down nearly three cents from a week ago, according to AAA Auto Club.
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The Daytona Beach metro area in AAA's comprehensive daily survey of gas prices includes all stations inVolusia and Flagler counties.
The statewide average price for regular gasoline also held steady on Monday at $3.379 a gallon, up just two/tenths of a penny from Sunday, but down three cents from a week ago.
"There's actually downward pressure on pump prices, despite the forecast that a hurricane would approach Florida this week," said Mark Jenkins, AAA's Tampa-based spokesman, in his weekly fuel price update report on Monday morning.
"Since (Hurricane)Ian is not projected to impact the refineries in Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas, it's unlikely that the storm itself or the resulting demand would cause pump prices to spike," he added.
Individual gas stations could run out of gas at times this week, but if so, it would only be temporary, said Jenkins. "The state makes it a priority to keep gasoline shipments going as long as it is safe to do so. Once the storm passes, shipments will resume as soon as possible."
Gas stations are prohibited from significantly raising fuel prices beyond what they've charged in the past 30 days during a storm-related state of emergency, Jenkins added. "The exception is if the cost of obtaining that commodity increased for the business owner," he wrote in his report on Monday.
Fortunately for local motorists, that hasn't been the case, at least not yet. "Gasoline and oil futures prices plunged 7%last week to eight-month lows on concerns that aggressive interest rate hikes by the U.S. Federal Reserve could trigger an economic recession," Jenkins wrote.
The average price for regular gasoline nationally inched higher on Monday at $3.725 a gallon, up from $3.714 on Sunday. The uptick snappeda 14-week streak of slowly, but steady lessening of pain at the pump for U.S. motorists.
Gas prices both globally as well as locally began surging in late February when Russia invaded Ukraine, which resulted in a ban on Russian fuel imports by the United States as well asa number of other countries. Russia is the world's third-largest producer of oil and petroleum products, including gasoline, behind the U.S. at No. 1 and Saudi Arabia at No. 2.
Wholesale crude oil prices, which greatly affect retail gasoline prices, are determined in international auctions based on global supply and demand.
Gas prices peaked in the Daytona Beach area as well as for all of Florida on June 13 when the average price for regular gasoline hit an all-time record high of $4.89 a gallon both locally as well as statewide.
Since then, the average price for regular has declined $1.54 a gallon in Daytona Beach and $1.52 for the state as a whole even with the slight increases this past weekend. Hurricane Ian notwithstanding, prices could continue falling this fall as U.S. refineries begin their annual switch to producing less expensive winter-blend fuels.
The X-factor would be if Hurricane Ian unexpectedly veered far enough west to disrupt the U.S. refineries in the Gulf. So far, that scenario is not in any of the forecasted tracks for the storm.
At the Daytona Beach Sam's Club, Pomona Park resident George Phillips said he wasn't overly concerned about Hurricane Ian even though he decided to not only refuel his van, but also fill two five-gallon gas cans, "just in case."
"I've been through a few of these hurricanes before," the Vietnam War veteran said. "It's going to be what it is."
Who's got the cheapest gas
GasBuddy.com is a mobile app that tracks gas price changes at individual stations across the country, based on motorists' reports.
On Monday morning, the cheapest places to buy gas in Volusia County were the Walmart station at 105 Howland Blvd. in Deltona and the Circle K on the corner of State Road 415 and Doyle Road in Osteen, both of which were charging $3.07 a gallon for regular.
In Daytona Beach, the cheapest gas wasatthe members-only Sam's Club station next to the Interstate 95/LPGA Boulevard interchange which was charging $3.13 a gallon for regular.
In Flagler County, the cheapest gas was at the Shell station at 320 Palm Coast Parkway N.E. in Palm Coast, which was charging $3.29 a gallon for regular.
Where gas prices currently stand
Average price for a gallon of regular gasoline:
DAYTONA BEACH
Monday: $3.357
Sunday: $3.352
Week Ago: $3.385
Month Ago: $3.593
Year Ago: $3.063
Highest Recorded Average Price: $4.895 (June 13, 2022)
Previous Record Average Price (prior to Russia's invasion of Ukraine): $4.117 (July 17, 2008)
FLORIDA
Monday: $3.379
Sunday: $3.375
Week Ago: $3.409
Month Ago: $3.611
Year Ago: $3.066
Highest Recorded Average Price: $4.891 (June 13, 2022)
Previous Record Average Price (prior to Russia's invasion of Ukraine): $4.079 (July 16, 2008)
SOURCE: AAA Auto Club
