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Watch out for contaminated gas while filling tanks
Citgo alerted state officials that an employee accidently pumped diesel fuel into regular gas tanks. Officials say if you filled up Saturday after 10 a.m., you may be affected.
Tampa, Fla. - Half a dozen gas station across the Bay Area are still not permitted to sell gasoline after the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services says human error at the Port of Tampa Bay led to widespread fuel contamination at gas stations fueled by Citgo.
Any fuel purchased from 10 a.m. on Saturday, August 26 through Sunday, August 27, at impacted stations has a strong likelihood of being contaminated with diesel fuel, according to the FDACS.
Contaminated gasoline and diesel have the potential of causing engine damage or affecting operability. Impacted stations were ordered to stop selling gas until the contaminated fuel is replaced and tanks are cleaned. Once the stations are cleared or have completed a corrective action plan fuel will once again be safe for purchase.
As of Tuesday afternoon, 17 stations remain under a stop-sale order pending laboratory confirmation:
- 7-Eleven: 4325 Lee Boulevard, Lehigh Acres
- 7-Eleven: 12750 South Cleveland Avenue, Fort Myers
- 7-Eleven: 290 Lakeland Park Road, Lakeland
- 7-Eleven: 940 S Broad St., Brooksville
- 7-Eleven: 1626 Meadow Road, Lehigh Acres
- 7-Eleven: 2401 James Redman Parkway, Plant City
- BJ's Wholesale: 1929 Pine Island Road N.E., Cape Coral
- BJ's Wholesale: 9372 Ben C Pratt Six Mile Cypress Pkwy., Fort Myers
- BJ's Wholesale: 13585 NE 86th Path, Lady Lakes
- Handy Foods Store #86: 21321 Palm Beach Blvd., Alva
- Superday CITGO: 1595 South McCall Road, Port Charlotte
- Bolton One LLC: 15434 US Highway 19, Hudson
- JHW #310 - DBA Avenue CITGO: 11867 N. Williams St., Dunellon
- AL Prime - Daytona Beach: 1898 S. Clyde Morris Blvd., Daytona Beach
- Choice Food & Gas: 310 N Central Ave., Umatilla
- Perfection Station 5: 9931 N Florida Ave., Tampa
- Rogers Petroleum: 134 N Desoto Ave., Arcadia
Eight stations have been inspected, remediated, and cleared by FDACS for fuel sales:
- 7-Eleven: 720 Chiquita Boulevard, North Cape Coral
- 7-Eleven: 2604 Skyline Boulevard, Cape Coral
- 7-Eleven: 601 Pine Island Rd. S.W., Cape Coral
- 7-Eleven: 6050 Dean Dairy Road, Zephyrhills
- 7-Eleven: 714 Burnt Store Road, Cape Coral
- Handy Foods Store #87: 3205 Lee Blvd., Lehigh Acres
- Faulkenburg CITGO: 5320 Faulkenburg Road, Tampa
- PJI LLC: 7977 W Dunnellon Road, Dunnellon (Regular and premium fuel was not contaminated, only diesel fuel)
After emergency inspections and testing, FDACS has determined that six stations did not receive the contaminated fuel shipment:
- Dan's Car Wash: 39522 US Highway 19 N., Tarpon Springs
- 7-Eleven: 3437 US Highway 19, Holiday
- 7-Eleven: 13411 Fish Hawk Boulevard, Lithia
- Quick & Easy Stop: 4529 Bee Ridge Rd., Sarasota
- Palmers Easy Stop: 903 Cattleman Rd., Sarasota
- 2K Express 5: 6202 N 40th St., Tampa
"I am grateful to the hard-working men and women at FDACS who responded to this incident swiftly and thoroughly," said Commissioner of Agriculture Wilton Simpson. "It 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. 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."
What you should do if you bought bad gas
Anyone who purchased fuel from one of these locations on or after Aug. 26, and is concerned their vehicle may be impacted, you can initiate a claim through the Citgo Good Gas Guarantee program here.
Consumers may also file a complaint by contacting the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer services by calling 1-800-HELP-FLA or online at www.fdacs.gov.
Call Centers will be temporarily closed on Wednesday due to Hurricane Idalia.