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VALDOSTA — Lowndes County’s gasoline prices continued their post-storm slide last week.

The average price of regular gasoline Sunday in Valdosta was $2.65, down five cents from $2.70 a week earlier, according to the AAA Daily Fuel Gauge Report.

The lowest price of gasoline in the city Sunday was $2.55 per gallon at a North Valdosta Road retailer, while the highest was $3.31 at a store on North Patterson Street, according to the price tracking website gasbuddy.com.

Nationally, the average price of fuel Sunday was $2.58 per gallon, down from $2.63 seven days earlier, while Georgia’s average of $2.67 per gallon was also down five cents over the same period, the auto club said.

Gasoline prices across the Southeast were dealt a one-two punch by Mother Nature, first by Hurricane Harvey shutting down much of the Texas refinery capacity and closing a major pipeline through Georgia, followed by Hurricane Irma sweeping through Florida and Georgia Sept. 10-11.

Millions of Floridians evacuated their homes ahead of Irma, causing a rush on fuel supplies just as the state’s fuel ports had to shut for the storm.

On Aug. 20, the Sunday before Harvey made landfall in Texas, the average gasoline price in Valdosta was $2.16 per gallon, according to AAA.

In Friday market action, benchmark U.S. crude rose 11 cents, or 0.2 percent, to settle at $50.66 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude, used to price international oils, rose 43 cents, or 0.8 percent, to close at $56.86 a barrel in London.

Terry Richards is senior reporter at The Valdosta Daily Times.