State dips into diesel reserves to run some school buses

The S.C. Department of Education is facing fuel shortages after hurricanes Gustav and Ike, but school buses will keep rolling thanks to reserve supplies, a state education official said.

Of its 164-bus fleet, the Beaufort County School District uses 128 buses that are owned, maintained and fueled by the state.

Eighteen others are owned by the county.

An additional 18 are owned by First Student, a company that manages bus service for the district.

The state sent an e-mail to school districts Thursday announcing it would temporarily suspend the sale of fuel to district-owned buses. That means school districts can't buy fuel from the state for buses not maintained by South Carolina.

Kerry Mayo, local manager for First Student, said the 18 county-owned buses are fueled at the Beaufort County garage on Shanklin Road.

The 18 First Student buses are fueled at regular gas stations, he said.

South Carolina-owned buses use about 66,000 gallons of fuel a day throughout the state.

Thursday, the state received a shipment of 64,300 gallons of fuel -- less than it needs to maintain normal daily operations.

Friday, it received about 60,000 gallons.

Jim Foster, director of public information for the state Department of Education, said reserve supplies ensure normal service.

The state has about a four-day supply of diesel.

"It's a serious situation and one that folks are watching closely," Foster said. "... In the short term, it's something that we can weather."