Keys residents weigh evacuation, Gulf Coast next?

NOAA satellite photo of Hurricane Ike, Sunday afternoon. Click on the image for the latest National Weather Service reports.

With powerful Hurricane Ike still hundreds of miles away and on an uncertain course, residents on these low-lying islands weighed evacuation orders Sunday, perhaps a hint that Gulf Coast residents as far away as Texas and New Orleans may not heed similar calls to leave.

Sunday's forecast had Ike crossing Cuba and headed into the Gulf of Mexico later this week. The Florida Keys were in an uncertain position, and Gulf Coast states even more so. In Texas and Louisiana, where people were just returning from the mass evacuation for a weaker-than-expected Gustav, officials already acknowledged that it may be difficult to get people mobilized again.

In Key West, many residents have their own formula for determining whether to leave. Even though evacuation orders became mandatory Sunday, traffic out of Key West was busy but not jammed.

Mike Tilson, 24, was in wait-and-see mode Sunday, stocking up his Key West houseboat with supplies.

"I got tarps and champagne," he said as he pushed a wheelbarrow of supplies including Heineken beer, ice and a loaf of bread down the dock.

He said if the storm tracks north of Cuba, he'd evacuate. Otherwise, he won't leave even if Key West is expecting a Category 3 (winds of 111-130 mph). "It's just a good party. I'll stay."

At 2 p.m. EDT Sunday, Ike was a Category 4 hurricane with sustained winds of 135 mph, moving west at 13 mph. Hurricane force winds stretched 60 miles from the center. It was forecast to track over Cuba, re-emerging over the island's western coast Tuesday morning about 100 miles south of Key West as a Category 1.

Though forecasts suggested the storm was headed into the Gulf, historically, most major storms passing by Ike's position had curved northward. If it gets into the Gulf, it could head anywhere from Texas to the Florida Panhandle, and it likely would strengthen again.

President Bush declared a state of emergency for Florida because of Ike on Sunday and ordered federal money to supplement state and local response efforts.

More than 60 residents and nearly 90 people from a homeless shelter had arrived at a shelter at Florida International University in Miami by afternoon, but many others said they wanted to see what the storm does over Cuba and possibly reassess on Monday.

Key West Mayor Morgan McPherson had a warning for people not wanting to evacuate the area. He said anyone who thinks staying through a major hurricane is "champagne time is someone who hasn't thought it through clearly." He said emergency vehicles would be pulled off the road if the area gets tropical storm force winds.

McPherson said 15,000 tourists had already evacuated the region, and the Key West airport was set to close at 7 p.m. Sunday. Passengers bound for Key West from the Miami International Airport were being asked to show identification proving they lived there and only residents were being allowed on Key Westbound flights.

Among those planning to stay in the United States' southernmost city were Claudia Pennington, 61, director of the Key West Art and Historical Society, who said she's staying to care for the group's three buildings and their contents. Don Guess, 50, was putting up plywood on a friend's house Sunday and said he was sticking around because the storm didn't worry him.

(The Associated Press)

Click here for more GPB News storm coverage.

Gas Stations in NW Georgia Limiting Fuel Purchases

Several leading fuel analysts believe gas prices will return to pre-Hurricane Ike levels beginning Tuesday. These predictions are based on returning supply as oil production gets back online in the Houston area.

However, in parts of Georgia, some gas station owners in Georgia say they expect new fuel supplies next week.

One east Rome gas station owner says "We just don't have the gas to last much longer."

Many stations in the Rome area are limiting purchases to five gallons. Most stations in the area are charging 3.99 a gallon.

Hurricane Ike is already being dubbed the forgotten storm. While damage to refineries has been lighter than expected, the total cost of Ike is projected to be over 22 billion dollars.

Meanwhile, criticism of FEMA is mounting as residents try to return home after Ike.

Perdue may call in feds over gas gouging

The dramatic spike in gas prices from Hurricane Ike has prompted The Office of Consumer Affairs (OCA) to investigate hundreds of complaints of price gouging at the pump.

Officials have issued subpoenas for sales records of 25 gas stations statewide, and say more are on the way.

Bill Cloud, the director of administration and external affairs at the OCA says they've received over 700 complaints since Governor Sonny Perdue imposed an anti-gouging law last Friday.

But, Perdue says the skyrocketing numbers at the pump weren't only due to decisions by station owners :

"...[they] were the prices that some of the stations were having to pay up the line, and we're trying to investigate where that began and why, and what steps we should take – that probably would be outside of the purview of the State of Georgia, and while I’m a free-market guy, I certainly think it bears investigation by our federal government."

Perdue says Valdosta and Augusta were having the worst problems statewide in getting fuel from refineries knocked out by last week's hurricane.

Perdue and OCA officials, though, say the situation is improving and expect supply to be back to normal next week.

Click here for more GPB News coverage of the gas crisis, and here for more on Hurricane Ike.

State officials investigate gas price gouging

State officials are beginning to investigate complaints of price gouging at numerous gas stations across Georgia. This comes in the wake of Hurricane Ike’s trek through the Gulf and Texas over the weekend.

Through late this morning, the Governor’s Office of Consumer Affairs says they had received 80 complaints of unreasonable spikes in prices since 7pm Friday. The calls have come in from all parts of the state, and about different companies’ stations.

Early Friday night, the Governor issued an executive order against price gouging. Its aim is to make sure the prices people are paying are in-line with what retailers pay. Over the weekend some drivers around the state saw spikes of over $5.00 a gallon at certain stations, along with some stations running out of gas.

According to the AAA fuel gauge report this morning , the average price in Georgia for a gallon of regular unleaded was $4.16--a rise of 16-cents from Sunday.

The brunt of Hurricane Ike missed the biggest concentration of oil and gas refineries in the Gulf, with damage not as severe as feared. Experts predict gas prices to stabilize this week.

Perdue orders 'no' to gas price gouging

Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue has signed an executive order activating the state's price gouging statute to protect consumers from unreasonable price increases for gasoline because of Hurricane Ike. In a statement Friday night, the governor said the hurricane "has disrupted the production of distribution of gasoline, which will have an effect on prices." But, he added, "We expect the prices that Georgians pay at the pump to be in line with the prices retailers are paying. We will not tolerate retailers taking advantage of Georgians during a time of emergency." The statute prevents retailers from selling goods or services at an unreasonable price. It does not prevent price increases that accurately reflect an increase in the cost of the goods or services to the retailer.

(Associated Press)

U.S. Coast Guard battens down Ga. ports awaiting Hanna

This NOAA graphic shows the expected five-day storm path of tropical storm Hanna on Friday, Sept. 5, 2008. Click graphic for larger image.

The U.S. Coast Guard has closed the ports of Savannah and Brunswick to inbound vessels because of Tropical Storm Hanna.

This infrared satellite image provided by the NOAA show tropical storm Hanna moving over the Bahamas on Friday, Sept. 5, 2008. Click photo for larger image.

The National Weather Service issued tropical storm warnings Friday for the East Coast from Georgia to Virginia. The storm's center was expected to make landfall along the coast of the Carolinas early Saturday morning.

The Coast Guard said in a news release Friday that the ports will be assessed after the storm has passed to determine whether it's safe for traffic to resume.

In South Carolina, the State Ports Authority plans to close the Port of Charleston to land traffic at noon Friday. The Coast Guard has urged all vessels and barges weighing more than 500 gross tons to leave as soon as possible.

This NOAA image shows tropical storm Hanna heading toward the Atlantic coast and hurricane Ike churning further east over the Atlantic Ocean on Friday, Sept. 5, 2008. Click photo for larger image.

Click here for more GPB News coverage of hurricane season.

(The Associated Press)

Florida hopital patients staying in Statesboro

Sixteen South Florida hospital patients are staying at a Statesboro hospital after evacuating the Keys ahead of Hurricane Ike. The patients are from hospitals in Key West and Marathon, Florida and are recovering from either injuries or surgeries.

None of the patients could be released before their hospitals were evacuated, so a National Guard crew flew them in C-1-30 transport planes into Savannah, where ambulances took them to East Georgia Regional Medical Center in Statesboro.

"It really is not unusual for us to get 30-plus admissions per day," said Bob Bigley, the hospital's President and CEO. "The difference here was having sixteen in 30 minutes."

Doctors worked extra shifts to accommodate the new arrivals, who could stay through Wednesday. This is the first time East Georgia Regional has hosted evacuees. Previously, the hospital lacked the medical services needed to do so.

Officials still investigate gas price gouging

State officials are investigating over 1,500 complaints of gas price gouging. From that, officials have so far subpoenaed sales records of more than 150 gas stations.

Bill Cloud with the Governor’s Office of Consumer Affairs, says the range of prices has been all over the map:

"We did have some people that were above $6.00 a gallon, but then there were other people that were above the $4.50--$5.00 range".

Governor Sonny Perdue activated the state’s anti-gouging law September 12th soon after Hurricane Ike hit the Gulf Coast. But Cloud says complaint calls have still come in at a rate of about 25 a day.

He says it may be awhile before customers can get some money back.

"The stations have 30 days to respond to us. We have to review the responses, then we have to get them in here to negotiate a settlement. Certainly the first settlement we always try to negotiate is for restitution to the customers".

According to the AAA fuel gauge report, Georgia’s current average for a gallon of regular unleaded is $3.72. That’s 25 cents higher than the national average.

Economic Woes Hitting Red Cross Hard

Martha Perez, her son 20-month old son Emmanuel Matias and friend Mayra Perez, right, walk back to their home after receiving hot meals from the Red Cross in the aftermath of Hurricane Ike in Baytown, Texas, in this Sept. 16, 2008 file photo. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez, File)

The perfect economic storm Georgia’s going through has battered emergency relief services like the American Red Cross. The Albany branch says they almost went under.

Red Cross officials say donations in southwest Georgia have dropped dramatically the last three months and they were on the verge of suspending operations.

Mari Wright runs the Albany Red Cross office:

”Many of our regular contributors, that would, say, donate a hundred dollars, are now giving us $25 dollars. People that were giving us $25 dollars or less… can’t give us anything. so we are probably at 85 – maybe 90% down, and that’s a considerable amount. It truly is.”

Wright says, however, that the United Way, local businesses and individuals have brought in enough donations in recent days to keep their aid services afloat.

Conditions in more urban Red Cross offices are less dire, however.

Officials in Columbus, Augusta, and Valdosta cite a larger donor base, and financial assistance from the national office to help them keep their doors open.

Click on the player below to hear this report.

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Lanier at record lowest seasonal level

Lake Lanier. Click on the map for a full-sized image. (Courtesy U.S. Army Corps of Engineers)

Hurricane Ike and other recent storms that've swept the region didn't leave as much water behind in Lake Lanier as water officials had hoped. In fact, it's the lowest Lanier has even been for this time of year.

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers officials says that while tropical storm Fay did bring up the level to just over 1055 feet, that's still 17 feet below normal full pool - 1,071 feet.

In addition, officials say they’re expecting a dry winter.

Click here for more GPB News ongoing drought coverage.

Gas prices surge in Georgia

Gas prices in Georgia surged over the weekend, and again overnight as a direct effect of Hurricane Ike’s path through the Gulf into Texas. The statewide average for a gallon of regular unleaded this morning is $4.16--that stands above the national average of $3.84 a gallon. For a time late Friday, prices surged above $5.00 a gallon in some parts of Georgia before falling back in the $4.00 range.

On Friday, Governor Sonny Perdue activated the state’s price-gouging statute to protect Georgia consumers from unlawful and out-of-line price jumps.

A check of AAA South and its gas price report this morning shows Atlanta’s average is among the lowest around Georgia--$4.11 a gallon. Augusta is at the high end of the scale at $4.39 for a gallon of regular unleaded.

McCain call buoys Chambliss rally

Republican presidential nominee John McCain surprised rank & file Georgia Republicans calling into a re-election rally for U.S. Sen. Saxby Chambliss on Saturday.

McCain said he expected the election to be a hard-fought close contest. But he said he and his running mate, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, "relish the underdog status."

He thanked the Georgia Republicans shouting his name for their enthusiasm, saying it inspired him.

McCain also said his thoughts and prayers are with victims of Hurricane Ike in Texas and encouraged donations to the relief efforts. The call lasted six minutes.

McCain's call came after Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue joked that Democrat Barack Obama was hurting the state's economy by moving paid staff from the state.

(The Associated Press)

Click here for more GPB News election coverage.