![]() ![]() “Then we had priorities where we needed propane fast to meet back-up generator needs, emergency response kitchens, and critical facilities across the state. “The Governor helped us by requiring that restoring electricity to propane bulk plants be top priority while 6.7 million electricity accounts were without power,” Calhoun explained. With rail and ports down, we had seven days of only truck transports to move gas supply into Florida. Bringing propane down the peninsula in trucks to meet supply needs is not a fast process. “We needed propane immediately for our customers, but many bulk plants were without electric power and we could not get gas out of them. It did get in Saturday after the storm,” Calhoun said. “The Plains terminal was not up yet, and a ship did not get into the Targa facility before the storm hit. While Texas has ample storage and product in the salt caverns at the Mont Belvieu hub, Florida is a peninsula with limited storage. One key problem in Florida that was not a factor in Texas was lack of propane availability immediately after the storm. “This has been a rough couple of weeks but it has also been a story of propane people of all companies coming together and working together to resolve problems fast. “It kept us guessing as it corkscrewed up the state, hitting areas that meteorologists said would not be in the path while leaving other areas with less damage than expected,” said Dale Calhoun, executive director of the Florida Propane Gas Association. In Florida, the landfall of Hurricane Irma brought similar challenges. ![]() Mason is keeping association members up to date on hurricane relief activities in a weekly publication called Monday Morning Messenger, and links have been provided to documents that clarify hours-of-service waivers, regulatory exemptions for refined fuels providers (as many propane companies also sell refined fuels), and financial assistance information for small businesses. Several donations came in immediately from state propane associations nationwide as well as some from industry companies and other individuals. Jackie Mason, legislative and regulatory affairs director at the association, set the fund up online at and had raised $9900 by Sept. It was amazing how the volunteers came together to help our companies do whatever it took to meet customer needs and get their business caught up,” he added.Ī fund was established by the Texas association at Van Hoy’s direction to help offset the cost of repairing or replacing equipment at existing residential customers’ homes in counties affected by Hurricane Harvey. “We had some companies that literally had tornado damage as well as hurricane damage to their facilities, but they were still able to load and deliver gas to customers. In some cases, due to extensive rebuilding required, getting propane service back was not going to be the top priority for a while,” Van Hoy said. ![]() In many cases tanks needed to be inspected and reset. “Initially the key goal was to get gas service back for customers. There were a few companies in definite need of help and Van Hoy mobilized volunteers from other companies in the state as well as a few willing to come to Texas from other states to lend a hand. Bill Van Hoy, executive director, contacted 40 and found most companies said despite some challenges they were going to be OK. The Texas Propane Gas Association (TPGA) had several members in the affected area. ![]()
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