Gas shortages

So Katrina hit an area where there is a lot of oil production for the country, shutting down a number of oil platforms, refineries and pipelines, and apparently there are already signs of shortages appearing here and there in the south.

Unfortunately, it looks like the pumps might dry up in the north too, even in the northeast:

Emergency managers up the east coast and elsewhere are reporting serious gas shortages.

"We may be facing a major fuel supply situation," reported a county-level emergency manager in South Carolina. "We in this county are cutting all non-essential services such as garbage pickup. It is a developing situation."

Gas stations in upstate South Carolina reported they were running out of gas. "The state is telling us the pipeline that services the northeast has been disrupted at the supply point in Louisiana, and that it will take a week and half for it to reach us," he said. "A lot of gas stations are out and closed in this area."

In central Maryland, many gas stations were shut down by Wednesday night. "I don't know when I'll get gas again," said one station owner in Laurel, Md.