Harvey’s impacts are stretching far beyond the Gulf Coast to even here in Florida. AAA say current gas prices are the highest of the year.
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For those of you getting ready to head out for the holiday weekend, you’re probably noticing it’s going to cost more to get there.
As of Friday, the current price for a gallon of regular gas in Florida is $2.49. At this time last year, the price was $2.23 in Florida.
Among the drivers hitting the road for the holiday weekend is Jason Crow. He’s traveling, but for work not play.
“This is ridiculous,” said Crow referring to the rising gas prices at the pump. “I travel about 2,000 miles a month.”
Needless to say, when he fills up his wallet feels a little empty.
“It’s hurting the pocket.”
Thursday, he filled up for $2.42, which could be considered cheap compared to some of the other prices we’ve seen, some as high as $2.69. And they’re only expected to increase.
“Especially overnight, we’re just starting to see the impact of the refinery shutdowns in the Gulf Coast area,” said Josh Carrasco with AAA.
Florida is feeling an indirect hit from Hurricane Harvey.
According to AAA, gas prices went up about 6 cents overnight and will likely go up at least another 5-10 cents over the next week or so.
“Motorists should expect to pay the highest gas prices for Labor Day since 2014,” said Carrasco.
But before you point the finger at the gas station or accuse anyone of gauging, one store owner says it's not the case.
Alex Fernandez who owns West Palm gas off Southern Boulevard says they are just barely breaking even because the price for them is increasing too.
“It’s not something that we’re selling at a higher price and making this huge profit and every body’s getting rich. It’s not that. It’s not a price gauging thing. We are selling it just to cover the cost of what it cost us to buy it,” said Fernandez.
Because the prices are expected to rise even more, both Fernandez and AAA say Thursday is your best bet to save on gas, especially heading into the holiday weekend.