A steady stream of drivers pulled up to the pumps at the Sheetz on Routes 6 and 11 in South Abington Twp. on Sunday, but none left with gas.
Orange bags covered the nozzles of each pump, declaring them temporarily out of service. The Abington station ran out of gas late Saturday. The Sheetz station on Business Route 6 in Dickson City posted pumps with signs advising customers that only premium remained Sunday afternoon. On the O'Neill Highway In Dunmore, the unleaded grade 87 was shut off around 12:30 p.m.
The "interruptions" impacted Sheetz stations across eastern Pennsylvania, Sheetz Public Relations Manager Monica Jones explained. Refineries in New Jersey shut down because of Superstorm Sandy, limiting the supply to Pennsylvania.
"They were not producing, and demand had not changed," Ms. Jones said. "Now that they are getting back to full capacity, we're all playing catch-up."
Ms. Jones did not have a concrete timeline for full restoration, but she believed it would not take more than a few days.
"We saw this on the horizon. We've been doing everything we can to avoid the interruptions," she said, adding that no recurrences were anticipated. "We're hoping everything will start to level out."
Tony Colinet, assistant manager at the Clarks Summit Sheetz was confident that the problem would be corrected shortly.
"A lot of people get scared thinking there is a gas shortage, but this is just temporary," he said, noting that customers had been very understanding. "You know Sheetz. If there's gas they'll get it here."
It was unclear why no other area stations were impacted, but Ms. Jones speculated that the use of different suppliers and contract terms could be a part of the reason.
In Dickson City, Angel Ortiz, 32, was surprised to find only one option. He stopped at the station to fill up a portable container for a friend who ran out of gas nearby.
"It happened a lot back in Puerto Rico where I'm from," he said, adding he thought it would be temporary.
In the meantime, he filled his portable gas container with premium.
Contact the writer: rbrown@timesshamrock.com, @rbrownTT on Twitter