Fuel is again flowing from SeaPort Manatee terminals to Southwest and Central Florida and beyond, serving the needs of a region impacted by Hurricane Milton's Oct. 9 landfall.

“Thanks to cooperative efforts between Manatee County, state and federal authorities, and industry partners, fuel distribution activities have resumed at SeaPort Manatee as of this morning,” Kevin Van Ostenbridge, chairman of the Manatee County Port Authority, said Sunday [Oct. 13].

As power restoration began at Manatee County’s seaport, limited landside cargo operations resumed, while, per U.S. Coast Guard direction, waterside operations resumed during daylight hours, with shipping channel activity limited to a single direction.

“SeaPort Manatee is a critical gateway for supplying fuel stations throughout our region and beyond, with a flow of nearly 400 million gallons a year,” said Carlos Buqueras, SeaPort Manatee’s executive director. “It is particularly crucial that we have been able to see resumption of this fuel supply at a time when two hurricanes have hit our area in such a short period of time.”

Located “Where Tampa Bay Meets the Gulf of Mexico,” SeaPort Manatee is a dynamic global trade hub, serving as the vibrant ships-to-shelves gateway for burgeoning Southwest and Central Florida markets, with convenient rail and roadway links, including the distribution-center-filled Tampa/Orlando Interstate 4 corridor.

The closest U.S. deepwater seaport to the expanded Panama Canal, SeaPort Manatee offers 10 deep-draft berths, proficiently fulfilling diverse demands of the container, liquid and dry bulk, breakbulk, heavy-lift, project, and general cargo customers. The self-sustaining port generates more than $5.1 billion in annual economic impacts while providing for more than 37,000 direct and indirect jobs – all without the benefit of local property tax support.

Port Tampa Bay

Port Tampa Bay in Hillsborough County also announced it has resumed fuel distribution and reopened shipping channels on Oct. 12, which closed after Hurricane Milton. 

"We want to express our sincere appreciation to those who helped our port prepare and recover from the impact of the storm. The port’s Operations, Security, Facilities and Engineering staff, maritime community, the U.S. Coast Guard, and our local law enforcement and emergency response agencies were critical to our ability to minimize the effects of the storm and help our port to return to operations as soon as safely possible," Port Tampa Bay said in a release.