Pain at the Pump Continues for a Second Day

It was another stress-filled day at the pump in Wayne Thursday.

Drivers waited in line for hours to fill their gas tanks or buy gas for their generators.

“I’ve never seen it this bad,” said Melinda Cruz, a Pompton Plains resident who waited two and a half hours to get gas at the Cumberland Farms station on Hamburg Turnpike. The line Cruz waited in wrapped around the Preakness Shopping Center and up the Alps Road extension that connects with Berdan Avenue.

Drivers pushed the limits of their patience for the second consecutive day as hundreds of vehicles lined up at gas stations throughout Wayne.

“People aren’t going to be able to take much more of this,” said Nick Castalenos. “Someone is going to lose it one of these days and then we’re really going to have a problem.”

Police throughout North Jersey and Wayne have broken up fights and shouting matches between drivers. Some Wayne stations limited people to $30 worth of gas to stretch ther supply.

Finding a station that was open proved to be a challenge.

The Shell station on Riverview Drive was closed in the morning and early afternoon but opened in the afternoon. The Sunoco gas station at the intersection of Black Oak Ridge and Alps Roads was closed for at least part of the day. Vehicles waited for more than two hours to get to the pump at that station Wednesday.

The Exxon stations on Route 23 were open for part of the day.

The Exxon stations at the intersection of Alps Road and Hamburg Turnpike and on Valley Road and Preakness Avenue have been closed.

Vehicles stretched for more than a mile on Route 23 North trying to get into the Valero station near the 23 Plaza. Police directed traffic at the location.

Governor Christie Wednesday waved the requirements that affect stations from buying fuel from out-of-state suppliers Wednesday in an attempt to boost supplies.

The waiver will be in place until Nov. 7. It was made necessary by the shutdown of pipelines and refineries in the wake of Hurricane Sandy.

“Something has to be done,” said Rick Romero as he waited to buy gas for his generator. “We can’t continue to function like this much longer. We got through Irene last year but this is totally different.”

If you know of any open gas stations, contact us on Facebook and Twitter and tell us where.

— Have a question or news tip? Contact editor Daniel Hubbard at Daniel.Hubbard@patch.com or find us on Facebook and Twitter. For news straight to your inbox, sign up for our daily newsletter.