Two days after Florida officials warned of \u201cpotentially widespread fuel contamination,\u201d nearly 20 Gulf Coast gas stations remain under a stop-sale order as locals brace, and even evacuate, for\u2002fast-approaching Hurricane Idalia.\u00a0
The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services\u00a0said Sunday\u00a0that it identified a gas and diesel contamination issue caused by human error at the Port of Tampa.
The department warned that fuel purchased from 29 stations from 10 a.m. Saturday to 10 a.m. Sunday had a \u201cstrong likelihood of being contained with diesel fuel.\u201d The stations, supplied by the gas company Citgo, were all in the Tampa area.
Officials warned contamination could affect car operability.
Emergency inspections and testing have led officials to conclude that six of the 29 stations did not receive the contaminated shipment, officials said in an\u00a0update\u2002Tuesday.
The department inspected, remediated and cleared eight other stations for fuel sales in Cape Coral, Lehigh Acres and other locations.\u00a0
Meanwhile, 17 more stations remain \u201cunder a stop-sale order pending laboratory confirmation,\u201d the department said.
\u201cIt is never good to have such a catastrophic error for consumers, but particularly during a time when Floridians are evacuating from a potentially dangerous storm,”\u00a0Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson said in a statement. “I firmly believe our department was able to mitigate what could have been a worse situation. We stand ready to assist those whose vehicles and equipment were impacted by contaminated fuel.\u201d
Citgo said in a\u00a0statement\u2002that on Saturday the company \u201cdiscovered contaminated product at its Tampa, Fla., terminal as a result of a product routing issue at the terminal and immediately shut down the rack.\u201d
“CITGO marketers who lifted gasoline and diesel from the terminal\u00a0earlier that day were notified and asked to stop sales,” the company said.
Citgo said that it is \u201ccommitted to safe, reliable and responsible operations” and that it is investigating.
Customers who believe they bought contaminated fuel Saturday can initiate claims on\u00a0Citgo\u2019s website\u00a0or over the phone.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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