Dearborn fills its city fuel tanks over Iran war fears, and the bill comes in at $75,000, above the first estimate

DEARBORN — Dearborn has filled its city fuel tanks to the top, spending $75,000 on gasoline and diesel that Mayor Abdullah Hammoud says will keep emergency vehicles, snowplows and other city vehicles running if renewed fighting between the United States and Iran disrupts supplies.

The city added 20,000 gallons of diesel and gas Thursday, completely filling its municipal fuel stations, Hammoud told Michigan Public. With full reserves, he said, the city could keep operating for four to six weeks.

The final bill is higher than the city first said. When Dearborn announced the move Wednesday, it said the preparations could cost up to $50,000 in emergency funds, depending on how much was used, WDIV-TV reported. At $75,000 for 20,000 gallons, the city paid an average of about $3.75 a gallon, by The Mitten Daily’s math.

Why the mayor says the city acted

Hammoud pointed to reports that the U.S. is considering new combat operations and to a federal directive ordering Army bases to stockpile 90 days of supplies, Michigan Public reported. “We are reading the tea leaves on the messages that the Pentagon is putting out,” he said, calling the purchase “a necessity to ensure that we had the resources we need to sustain the operations at the level of service that our residents expect.”

In the city’s announcement, Hammoud blamed “the federal government’s disastrous foreign policy decisions” and said the administration “has now promised to restart a military campaign, in spite of the objections of the American public, which could trigger further critical fuel shortages,” according to WDIV. Hammoud said he did not know whether other cities were doing the same thing.

What the fuel covers

The city said emergency service vehicles, public transit, snow-removal fleets and other city-owned infrastructure would keep running on the reserves during emergencies such as grid failures, fuel rationing or supply disruptions. Dearborn fuels its fleet at two city stations, one at the police station and one at a public works facility, MLive reported. If the city ran dry, Hammoud told MLive, “Everything shuts down.”

The cost to taxpayers

The money comes out of the city’s emergency reserves, according to MLive. Hammoud acknowledged the trade-off when the estimate was still $50,000. “That’s $50,000 away from a park, away from reconstructing a road, away from a neighborhood project,” he told MLive.

The city normally waits until its reserves run low before buying fuel, Hammoud told Michigan Public. Now, he said, “what we have to continually ask is at what point in time do we top off again?” He added, “We should be able to have the peace of mind that gas and diesel supply chains aren’t going to be disrupted.”

Sources:
Michigan Public, “Dearborn tops off fuel reserves over fear of resumed U.S. hostilities with Iran,” Oct. 29, 2026 (20,000 gallons, $75,000, four to six weeks, Hammoud quotes, usual practice), https://www.michiganpublic.org/politics-government/2026-10-29/dearborn-tops-off-fuel-reserves-over-fear-of-resumed-us-hostilities-with-iran
WDIV ClickOnDetroit, “Dearborn stockpiles fuel to keep snow plows, buses running amid supply disruption fears,” Oct. 28, 2026 (city announcement, up to $50,000, Hammoud statement, services covered), https://www.clickondetroit.com/news/local/2026/10/28/dearborn-stockpiles-fuel-to-keep-snow-plows-buses-running-amid-supply-disruption-fears/
MLive, “Dearborn to spend up to $50K on fuel reserves amid Iran war concerns,” Oct. 2026 (two city fueling stations, emergency reserves, Hammoud quotes), https://www.mlive.com/news/detroit/2026/10/dearborn-to-spend-up-to-50k-on-fuel-reserves-amid-iran-war-concerns.html
Photo: WhisperToMe, “DearbornPDHQ.JPG,” Wikimedia Commons, CC0, cropped and color-adjusted, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:DearbornPDHQ.JPG

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Tags: Dearborn · Fuel Reserves · Abdullah Hammoud · City Budget · Snowplows · Emergency Preparedness