Sandy victims coming to CT for gas

GREENWICH, Conn. (WTNH) -- The bus stopped in Old Greenwich and people ran at the pumps with cans in hand. And anything else that could hold gas, from milk jugs to apple cyder bottles, some New Yorkers were desperate.

"I had to come all the way from Manhattan," said Lisa Williams. "It was hectic and this was all I was able to get and now I have to take the bus back to my car in Manhattan, which is stuck in the street, and I hope it's not towed when I get there."

In New York and New Jersey gas is extremely hard to come by. Tempers are flaring on the New Jersey turnpike as gas lines stretch for miles.

"I've been waiting for over three hours," one female driver said. "What's wrong with this country?"

So the pump pilgrimage began as thousands drove to Greenwich and other shoreline towns.

"I have seen the lines and walked away, they were two miles long," one man said.

"We had to come here to Connecticut," another man said.

"You're the last ones to get gas. Did you know that? They shut it down now," said News 8's Bob Wilson.

"We came on time. We almost missed out because we stopped to eat at Taco Bell," the men said.

"The line was out to Old Greenwich and past the library, I'm running out and I had to cut it off because I was running out of gas," said station owner Phyllis Lamichane.

There is one Greenwich cop, and two State Troopers lined up lights flashing, not only to monitor the traffic but the owner says once she shut down the pumps people started to swarm the station and it got ugly quickly.

"Out of control, never seen it like this before, never," said Lamichane.

Whitestone, New York resident Dasie Toro was one of the very last cars to fill up after being turned away at seven other gas stations.

"They closed the gas station on me and I never got gas, I waited for three hours," said Toro.

"How lucky do you feel now," asked News 8's Bob Wilson.

"I'm blessed," she said, "thank you Jesus!"