Very interesting; I hadn't thought about this.

About a quarter of the nations petroleum comes from wells and refineries around the Gulf of Mexico. This hurricane will certainly disrupt pumping and refining for a little while. It has the potential to disrupt it for quite a while.

Oil supply is already incredibly tight. A disruption of 10% (domestically) would cause prices nationwide to skyrocket. More than a little scary, but also a small taste of what is to come over the next 20 years.