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NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y. – Traditionally, gas prices around the country rise during the summer, peak in August and begin to drop after the busy Labor Day weekend. This year, New Rochelle drivers may not see price relief at the pumps for some time.
With Hurricane Isaac knocking out power to refineries on the Gulf Coast and an unsettled situation overseas, gas prices in New York state have risen an average of 13 cents in the past week, to $4.13 a gallon, the third highest in the continental United States. The national average for regular was at $3.87 on Friday, more than 20 cents higher than a year ago, according to the AAA Fuel Gauge Report.
In New Rochelle on Friday, prices for regular grade ranged from $4.10 at the Getty station at 758 Pelham Road, the lowest price among stations reported by Automotive.com, to a high of $4.68 at the Gulf station at 635 Main St.
The high gas prices are expensive for New Rochelle resident Jorge Ortiz in his work as a driver.
“The economy is not getting better,” he said.
AAA spokesperson Robert Sinclair Jr. said immediate relief on gas prices should not be expected, and things can change by the day depending on various factors.
“This is really a day-to-day progression,” he said. “Things happen overseas we cannot control, and prices can change significantly from one day to the next. People were popping champagne after we hit an April peak and prices started to drop, and things literally changed the next day.”
Sinclair said Hurricane Isaac caused a slight bump in prices, but a more threatening issue is unrest in the Middle East, which may ultimately threaten the nation’s supply of crude oil.
“We’re seeing some of the effects of the global market,” he said. “The continuing tensions with Iran may ultimately take away as much as 20 percent of the world’s crude oil.”
Comments (1)
OH please with this nonsense about gas prices.The HURRICANE shutting down a refinery on the GULF COAST has absolutely 0 impact on the gas we are buying today,tomorrow and next week.We have already bought and paid for that a while ago.What happens with those maniacs on the mid east again,nothing to do with gas prices today! This is a blatant rip off of the American people at every click of the pump!SPECUALTORS and those oil company thieves should be brought to bear...alas,to many people makiing way to much money for anybody to do anything about it..including all the so called "for the people "politicians!IT'S A DISGRACE!!!