Gas Lines Form as Northeast Braces for Storm, Again

JERSEY CITY, N.J. -- It's deja vu at Northeast gas stations, except this time the gas lines are forming before the storm.

Perhaps wary given the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy in late October, motorists in several states rushed to gas stations Thursday night and this morning in advance of the forecasted Nor'easter known as Nemo.

According to a CBS New York report, one motorist in West Orange, N.J., waited approximately 40 minutes in line. In Long Island, N.Y., lines formed overnight at several gas stations including a Hess in Massapequa and a CITGO in Rockville Centre.

Those who got fuel were lucky. Some gas stations in Connecticut ran out by Thursday evening as people not only looked to fuel their vehicles, but also fill up containers to take home and use in their generators and snow blowers, the news outlet reported. In fact, an employee at a Cumberland Farms in Torrington, Conn., told a local newspaper that the convenience store had to turn off its gas pumps at 5 p.m.Thursday after running out of gas -- despite getting a delivery just the day before.

Even more northward, gas stations around western Massachusetts were also busy Thursday night. One Southampton, Mass., resident told WGGB-TV that he visited three gas stations and was met by lines at all of them. Similar to the scene in Connecticut, some sites reportedly ran out of gas.

Cumberland Farms spokeswoman Carin Warner told the news station that tanker trucks would be out until 2 a.m. refueling stations. She added that they’ll be back on the road doing the same thing during the storm until conditions become unsafe.

Nor'easter Nemo is predicted to dump anywhere from five inches to three feet of snow on the Northeast, with Boston expected to get between two and three feet. New York City was prepping for between 10 and 12 inches of snow. The worst of the storm is expected to barrel down on the region tonight and into Saturday morning. Wind gusts could reach 75 miles per hour. Widespread power failures are feared, along with flooding in coastal areas still recovering from Superstorm Sandy, according to the Associated Press.