NORTH BEND, Neb. (KMTV) — Bagged pumps at gas stations and social media posts left us wondering about a fuel shortage in Nebraska. We set out to learn more.
- We drove from Omaha to North Bend, checking gas stations on the way.
- We found several pumps with bags on them and other stations operating normally.
- Doug Bartek, a farmer in Wahoo, says the fuel shortage impacts his operation.
WATCH MOLLY'S STORY BELOW
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
Everyone is on the move.
We drove from Omaha to North Bend, checking gas stations on the way. Several pumps had bags on them, but many other stations were operating normally.
Reporter Molly Hudson talked to Doug Bartek, a third-generation farmer in Wahoo, last month. Thursday, she checked in to see how the fuel shortage impacts him.
“The thing that's kind of complicated it and made it worse is the way the spring planting is going. There has been really not much for rain, so farmers have just kind of kept going and, you know, kept using fuel all the time and then plus, it has been so dry; there has been some irrigation going on, so that just creates more demand for it and just kind of compounds the problem,” Bartek said.
Earlier this week, a regional federal waiver on service hours was put in place through June 30 for drivers hauling fuels in Nebraska, Iowa, and Kansas.
The declarationsays the fuel shortages are, quote, "resulting from unexpected increased demand for the spring planting season coupled with refinery conversion to summer blends, pipeline maintenance in key supply corridors, and outages at terminals."
A Casey's employee told Molly they typically put bags over the pumps when they aren't working properly. Molly called a communications person for Casey's to learn more, but did not hear back Thursday evening.
