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Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend September 1, 2005 Robert Lown of Fairfield, Calif., say he�s watched the price of fuel more than double since he purchased his truck. At $2.999 a gallon, he paid $70 to fill up Wednesday in Ashland. Mail Tribune / Bob Pennell Local gasoline prices nudge near $3 a gallon, stunning customers By DAMIAN MANN Mail Tribune Gas prices surged to the psychological barrier of $3 a gallon for regular in Jackson County Wednesday, whipped up by a perfect storm of escalating crude oil prices and a hurricane that’s knocked out refineries in the South. "It’s gone crazy," said Fairfield, Calif., resident Janice Lown, who paid $70 to tank up her truck in Ashland. Many gas stations in the region posted prices of close to $3 Wednesday, but the Valley View 76 and the Shell station at the north Ashland interchange both posted prices of one-tenth of a cent under $3. Only a handful of stations offered gas at less than $2.90. Many offered mid-grade gas at $3.08, and premium grades at $3.18. Advertisement "It cost me $101 to fill up my Suburban," said Greg Bailey. "I almost fainted." Bailey, owner of the Valley View 76, predicts prices are going to keep jumping and should be higher than $3 in the next day or two. "Nobody wants to be the first one over $3 a gallon with all the TV reporters there," said Bailey. "We’re all a bunch of chickens." Not so south of the border, it seems. One motorist reported paying $3.29 a gallon in Crescent City, Calif., for regular-grade gas. Baily said it’s difficult enough watching motorists gasp at prices that have jumped 20 cents or more in the past week. "Who wants to be the first person?" he said. "I already have to where a flak jacket out there." Georgia Brouillette of Graham, Wash., noticed the price of regular was $2.98 when she checked in to a hotel in Stockton, Calif., Tuesday night, only to see the price jump to $3.05 the next morning. "It was a rude awakening," said Brouillette, who paid $35.84 to fill up her Dodge Intrepid. "It didn’t pay for me to sleep." Elliott Eke, spokesperson for AAA, said the price of gas jumped 17 cents in the Medford area in one day. The AAA fuel gauge report average price of $2.82 cents posted Wednesday morning was already out of date by the afternoon, he said. Eke said he’s heard rumors that refineries in Washington won’t be selling gas or diesel to non-branded stations such as Fred Meyer, Safeway and Bi-Mor. "Supposedly, they aren’t going to have that much inventory," he said. The situation could get worse if it takes two to three months to restore electricity to refineries in the Gulf of Mexico as some experts have predicted, said Eke. "I hope they find a solution," he said. Thirty percent of the crude oil for the United States comes through the Gulf of Mexico, but 50 percent of the gasoline supply is converted there. In addition, said Eke, there have been no new refineries built in the last 30 years. It is too soon to tell whether high gas prices will have an impact on tourism this Labor Day. "It could have a ripple effect throughout the state," said Eke. To help avoid problems in the Medford area, Eke said, "The advice I’m giving people is don’t panic. Don’t do panic buying because it creates localized shortages." Robert Lown, Janice’s husband, was suspicious of the high gas prices he’s seen here and elsewhere in his travels to Portland to visit relatives. The oil companies are going to "push it up to see how much they can get out of the people on vacation," he said. Ashland resident Bud Lininger, who uses a mid-grade gas in his SUV, said Wednesday that it was the first time he had spent more than $3 a gallon and the first time he’d spent $50 to fill up. "I don’t have any choice but to pay it," he said. "But I won’t do as much recreational driving." Lininger said he thinks gas prices have been artificially set low and thinks this might push the country away from its heavy dependence on oil. "Our fuel has been subsidized for years by our defense policies," he said. Bailey, the owner of the Valley View 76, said, "I feel real sorry for people on fixed incomes. It’s got to be a real hardship." Reach reporter Damian Mann at 776-4476, or e-mail Local gasoline prices nudge near $3 a gallon, stunning customers ">[email protected] . Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2005 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. 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