LP Gas, March 2010

reports An onslaught of cold followed It started in October and never let up through February for a large percentage of the United States No single area had record demands it was just a large geographical area he observes with shifting patterns of higher thannormal usage Its a great season for propane retailers Lerum declares If we have seasons every year like this one there will be a lot of happy campers A surveying party led by George Washington in 1770 twice camped at Powhatan Point a pleasant and strategic spot along the Ohio River Yet as the sun set on this years Presidents Day there was an unprecedented 2 feet of snow on the ground with more on the way Were going day to day and were up over last year says Ed Hager propane manager for the Marshall County Co Op in nearby Moundsville W Va but wed be selling a lot more propane if we could get into the driveways We have a lot of elderly people who cant clear their driveways Other than that its business as usual it will be a good season for us Snowbound will call clients on both sides of the river were asked to clear a pathway to their tanks and to be patient We have two excellent drivers and we have good customers who understand what were going through Hager says Its been trying but everyones making do concurs Thomas C Osina executive director of the West Virginia Propane Gas Association These storms have been humongous with a tremendous amount of snow in a short period of time The roads are narrow and curvy and the Mountain States National Guard was mustered to assist with snow removal amid a designated state of emergency Osina says the associations membership has been maintaining a level attitude throughout the ordeal Theyre not calling me to complain because theyre dealing with the situation W I N T E R R E P O R T For good or ill MTVs Jersey Shore was among the most talked about shows of the television season and there certainly was a situation brewing as beachside boardwalks were inundated with blowing and drifting snow measured in feet instead of inches Weve never seen this much snow in recent years so its shocking says Larry Horowitz president of the New Jersey Propane Gas Association Were coping he adds noting that demand rose as the fl akes fell If theyre staying home from school and work theyre using a lot more propane A bit of a supply crunch broke out but no major bottlenecks occurred according to Horowitz Were catching up The biggest problem we have is getting in driveways and fi nding tanks especially underground tanks Plague of snow derails D C Snowpocalypse and snowmageddon were among the terms applied to the 30 plus inches enveloping the region around Washington D C The resulting obstacles had executives from at least one retailer pulling out their hair Theyre all going bald its crazy says a company representative Our CEO and president are also going out on the trucks Backing into driveways is much easier with two people there They have their mirrors but the extra person can help keep them out of ditches Its considerably more diffi cult to drag that hose through 3 feet of snow notes Inergys Andy Ronald vice president of supply and wholesale for the Eastern United States The buffeting slowed down deliveries to the bulk tanks before it even gets to the bobtails he points out citing clogged highways and byways Inergy doubled up on its bobtail staffi ng but a truck that normally makes 20 deliveries per day was still reduced to completing just eight to 10 It was a plague of snow that shut down the nations capital and made Continued on page 32 PR PANE 0 1 1 TM 23 45 6 7 89 @ 143 1 3 81 351 4 1 80 81 35 10 4 A 45 4 1181 81 80 81 35 10 4 3 1 01 1 3 B C 1 D 181 41 23 2 3 1 2 3 0 1 2 0 1 0 1 2 2 31 0 45 36 7 80 81 81 34 144 350 9 3 03 4 51 1 11 8 1 351 1 3 4 0 03 04314 00 1 23 44 5 6778 895 5 www LPGasmagazine com March 2010 LPGas 31