Gasoline

Woman burned with gasoline KNOXVILLE - A Knoxville man was awaiting a bond hearing after a woman was doused with gasoline and set on fire Sunday afternoon, Maryland State Police said. Edward Lee Moten Jr., 40 of 19245 Garretts Mill Road in Knoxville was charged with first- and second-degree assault and reckless endangerment. Police said a husband and wife were arguing at their home at 2 p.m. on Sunday when the man became enraged. The man threw gasoline from a 2-gallon container at the woman, drenching her clothing, police said.

TRI-STATE -- With a weakening economy and Thanksgiving just around the corner, the sight of lower gas prices is a welcome relief for many local residents interviewed last week. Edie Riker, 53, of Summit Point, W.Va., said Wednesday that the lower gas prices will help people get out of the house, ultimately helping the slumping economy. "With gas prices dropping, I am more inclined to get out of my house and go shopping," Riker said. "With the economy the way it is and people not spending, now is the perfect time for gas prices to fall.

SHARPSBURG -- A 15-year boy suffered second-degree burns to his lower legs Thursday in a fire in the 3000 block of Limekiln Road, according to a release from the Maryland State Fire Marshal. The boy was playing with gasoline that had been poured on the ground around 6 p.m. when the fire began, the release stated. The boy was taken to Washington County Hospital and transferred to a burn center, according to the release. Units from Potomac Valley and Sharpsburg fire departments responded.

FREDERICK, Md. -- A Frederick man was in critical condition at Monday a Washington hospital, two days after an acquaintance doused him with gasoline and set him on fire, according to police. Joshua Mashburn, 26, is charged with attempted first-degree murder, first-degree arson and other offenses, police said. Police said Mashburn fled in a burgundy colored, 1994 Plymouth Voyager van after the attack at the victim's house around 4 a.m. Saturday. The unidentified victim was in the MedStar Burn Unit of Washington Hospital Center with serious wounds to his head and torso.

julieg@herald-mail.com When it's time to fill his car's gas tank, Calvin Mahaney regularly checks gas prices at local stations, so he said he was surprised to see prices come down in recent weeks. Normally, gas prices spike heading into Memorial Day weekend because demand for gas increases as people hit the road for the long weekend, AAA Mid-Atlantic spokeswoman Myra Wieman said. Politics have contributed to an oversupply of crude oil so consumers are seeing a good effect on pump prices, Wieman said.

Classic Fuels, a gasoline convenience outlet, has opened at 8650 Sharpsburg Pike after nine months of extensive rehabilitation of a building at the intersection of Md. 65 and Md. 68. The store specializes in dispensing gasoline and quality carryout or dine-in food at a reasonable price, according to a prepared release. Classic Fuels was designed with a circa 1950s service station in mind. Owners Dwayne Lippy and Michael Getzandanner wanted to combine their interest in classic automobiles and service station memorabilia with the modern convenience of a one-stop shop, the release says.

Westbound lanes on Interstate 70 were closed for about two hours Friday after a gasoline tanker truck leak, Maryland State Police said. The gasoline was treated with foam to prevent fires, Washington County Emergency Services Director Joe Kroboth said. A portion of the interstate was closed east of Md. 66 from about 3:20 to 5:45 p.m., state police said. Traffic on eastbound I-70 was limited to one lane and westbound traffic was rerouted onto the other lane to alternate routes, state police said.

Motorists aren't the only ones feeling an economic pinch at the pumps. In Friday's Herald-Mail newspapers, find out how the City of Hagerstown, Washington County Public Schools and other entities are dealing with the rising cost of gasoline. "

If you are using a kerosene heater to keep warm this winter, the U.S. Product Safety Commission and the National Kerosene Heater Association has offered the following safety tips: · Only use water-clear 1K grade kerosene. Gasoline cannot be used as a substitute. Even in small amounts, gasoline or other volatile solvents mixed with kerosene can greatly increase the chance of fire or an explosion. · Keep kerosene in its own distinct container separate from gasoline containers to prevent accidentally using the wrong fuel.

Gas mistakenly sold as kerosene MARTINSBURG, W. Va. - Anyone who purchased kerosene at the Eagle Mart Citgo station in Eagle Plaza in Hedgesville between Oct. 25 and Oct. 29 is being asked to bring the fuel back because they might have gotten gasoline instead. "We don't know for sure that's what happened, but we'd rather be safe and not sorry," said Martha Simpson, president of Waremart, Inc., which owns the facility. "It was brought to our attention first thing (Monday)

Gas prices once again rose nationally and locally as they continue to climb as fall approaches, according to figures from the AAA Daily Fuel Gauge Report. Regular grade gasoline nationally averaged $3.85 per gallon Tuesday afternoon, up from $3.84 last week. The price was the same in Hagerstown, but the jump was higher, as it was $3.78 last week. Throughout the rest of the state of Maryland, prices were at $3.79 on average, up from $3.78 last week. Prices in the state ranged on average from $3.76 to $3.91.

As Labor Day approaches, gas prices continue to rise and now are above year-ago prices for the third consecutive week nationally and locally, according to the most recent AAA Mid-Atlantic Weekend Gas Watch. The national average for regular-grade gas on Tuesday was $3.75 per gallon, up from $3.71 last week and $3.60 at this time last year, according to the AAA Daily Fuel Gauge Report at www.fuelgaugereport.aaa.com . At this time a month ago, the national average was $3.48. The average price in Hagerstown Tuesday was $3.69, up from $3.65 a week ago, $3.40 a month ago and $3.47 a year ago. Around the county, Sheetz on Virginia Avenue just south of Halfway Boulevard sold regular-grade gas at $3.78 per gallon, plus grade at $3.88 per gallon and a kerosene option at $3.99.

Gas prices have risen for three weeks and might not stop until after August, according to the AAA Mid-Atlantic Weekend Fuel Report. The national average for regular grade gas has been projected to rise from $3.39 to $3.45 per gallon this week, from $3.39 to $3.40 in Hagerstown, and from $3.39 to $3.44 throughout Maryland. On Tuesday, the average price of gas in and around Hagerstown was $3.40 per gallon, according to the AAA Fuel Price Finder website. Regular grade gas at United Petroleum on Pennsylvania Avenue was $3.37 per gallon Tuesday.

A Washington County Circuit judge Thursday sentenced a Williamsport man found competent to stand trial earlier this week to eight years in prison for dousing a stranger’s house with gasoline. Judge M. Kenneth Long Jr. sentenced Michael Commer, 43, to 20 years in prison, with 12 years suspended, for attempted second-degree arson and a concurrent five-year term for reckless endangerment. Long also added a consecutive three-year suspended sentence for misuse of a telephone in a separate case.

Markets, not people, set gas prices To the editor:  Please let this be the last word on gasoline prices. No president, no person has anything to do with the price. Crude oil (from which gasoline and other products are extracted) is traded on what is called the "futures" market. If the cost of a barrel of crude oil goes up in price today, the price you pay at the pump will go up two months from now (the future). Conversely, if the price goes down today, two months from today (the future)

There’s a very good argument for raising the tax on gasoline and a very good argument for banning construction of new septic systems. Excuse me for not making either of them. The best I can do is take a pass on the notion that the agenda of state, Baltimorecentric government is a full-blown attack on rural counties and country living. But it is difficult not to feel put upon when the lawmakers seem to treat Western Maryland as one big bed and breakfast, where people go to sip tea and enjoy the flowers — and where no one has to drive a healthy distance to work every day, or has to worry about a trifling little thing like housing costs.

Multiple injuries reported in I-70 crashes Forecaster: 'Messy' winter storm on way Frederick man doused with gasoline, set afire Hagerstown man dies after accident in Conn. Bill Scott, Summit Point Motorsports Park owner, dies at 71

FREDERICK, Md. -- A Frederick man was in critical condition at Monday a Washington hospital, two days after an acquaintance doused him with gasoline and set him on fire, according to police. Joshua Mashburn, 26, is charged with attempted first-degree murder, first-degree arson and other offenses, police said. Police said Mashburn fled in a burgundy colored, 1994 Plymouth Voyager van after the attack at the victim's house around 4 a.m. Saturday. The unidentified victim was in the MedStar Burn Unit of Washington Hospital Center with serious wounds to his head and torso.