COLDWATER, MI (WTVB) - We don’t know if these are the reasons gas prices around Branch County and Southwest MIchigan have taken a sudden turn for the worse, but it may just explain it. Prices jumped 20 to 30-cents within a few hours on Thursday morning, as one chain after another followed the lead ofSpeedway stations inMichigan.
Triple-A spokesperson Sarah Schimmer says political tension inIranand refinery shutdowns for maintenance are forcing prices higher, and she says it may be the beginning of a trend. Most analysts expect the rising prices to peak out around Memorial Day at around $4 a gallon, or worse, depending on any major disruptions in the flow of oil, or a sudden global economic recovery.
We also don’t know if they are connected but the incredibly mild winter, has been matched by a very mild flu season. By now we are normally knee deep in soiled Kleenexes but not this year. A Catholic school, Our lady of Sorrows, inFarmington Hillswas the first to cancel classes Friday because of the flu bug.
Here’s another mild winter related problem, Local ecologists say sugar maple trees rely on wet, snowy winters to produce the most syrup in the spring. That's not the case this year, and experts say it will reduce the amount of sap the trees produce, and lead to higher prices later this year.
