Gasoline was available throughout the Carolinas on Monday but Charlotte-based AAA Carolinas reported “pocket problems” with some areas having less availability than others.

Monday saw record high prices: $4.121 per gallon of unleaded gasoline in South Carolina and $4.085 in North Carolina, AAA reported.

Prices around The T&D Region were generally higher, in the $4.30 to $4.50 range.

Brad McCully of Brabham Oil Co. in Bamberg, which operates 27 Horizon E-Z shops, said he has about 80 percent of necessary supply but the gas is coming from suppliers with whom the company does not normally do business. McCully said the price of the gas is significantly higher than normal but he is confident his company can continue to locate suppliers.

He said prices at his stores fell from $4.59 to $4.39 on Monday.

AAA projections were positive on supply, but not on price.

“Damage to the Texas area refineries and Gulf of Mexico oil rigs appears to be minimal, and gasoline deliveries will get back on track soon,” said David E. Parsons, president and CEO of AAA Carolinas. “During the next few days, availability will be sporadic and prices will remain high.”

Shell gas stations in Orangeburg chose to set a limit of $50 per vehicle during the weekend to preserve gas and “ensure availability was not an issue with our customers,” said Wanda Lowden, a store manager.

Stations were to begin receiving loads of gasoline Monday, although some stations may receive less than their normal supply.

One station not expecting a shipment until Wednesday is Dodge’s Store on U.S. 301 South. There a manager said supplies were depleted Friday.

“It’s important for motorists to continue to exercise restraint and only fill up their vehicles when necessary -- when they have less than a quarter tank of gas -- for the next several days,” Parsons said. “Avoid panic pumping.”

AAA Carolinas acknowledged that prices are high, surpassing the previous record highs set on July 17, when oil was trading at about $140 a barrel on the international market. Gas prices jumped when it was announced Hurricane Ike would cause oil rigs and refineries to close, temporarily curtailing gasoline deliveries in the Southeast. Gasoline availability was made worse by recent shuttering of refineries and rigs on the Louisiana coast from earlier Hurricane Gustav and production was not back to normal before the passage of Hurricane Ike.

Oil companies in the Houston area are assessing damage and the availability of electricity will be the key to getting back to production, Parsons said. “In the best-case scenario, it will likely take seven to 10 days to ramp up production to the pre-Hurricane Ike levels.”

During this time, AAA Carolinas recommends that motorists:

* Drive conservatively.

* Use common sense –- fill up gas tanks only when they dip below a quarter tank.

* Consolidate trips and use the household car that gets the best mileage.

Those motorists who believe that a gasoline station has excessively high prices can file complaints of price gouging by contacting the S.C. Attorney General’s Office at gasprices@scattorneygeneral.com or 803-734-3970.

Rodney Brown is a student in the Mass Communications Department at Claflin University. He is a newsroom intern at The Times and Democrat for fall 2008.

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