New London — "Please make sure there is a clear path to your fill pipe so we can safely deliver your oil."

That's the end of an automated message before a jazzy piano kicks in for callers on hold with DDLC Energy, a Bank Street heating oil and propane provider.

Almost 15 minutes and several songs later, a customer service representative picked up Monday. No one was available to speak to the media, but DDLC's automated message was a familiar one for Connecticut residents grappling with the arctic cold that's swept through the region and spiked energy demands: heavy call volume and longer-than-normal response times.

Pastor James Levesque, of Engaging Heaven Church in New London, said Monday that the church received an oil shipment last week but needed more a few days later.

"No one would get to us," he said. "Our two (regular vendors) were seven days out and everyone else literally unhooked the ringer or made the line busy."

Levesque said the church used diesel fuel in the meantime and "booked deliveries for the next few weeks even if we didn't need it."

Experts and energy companies described the recent spike in demand as unprecedented. They said customer service and delivery delays weren't a matter of supply shortages but rather the result of temperatures in the teens and single digits, Thursday's snowstorm and the limits of manpower and scheduling for delivery drivers.

When locals expressed frustration on the Stonington Community Forum Facebook page with regard to wait times and busy signals at oil companies in the area, Jim Lathrop, owner of Best Energy in Pawcatuck, posted an explanation last week on supply chain gaps and said his company would help people out with emergency deliveries, even if it was only 10 gallons of oil to get them through last weekend.

Community members flooded the post with positive responses and requests for deliveries.

"Thank for what you have done; you helped many people who were unable to get oil anywhere else," Mary Belanger commented.

Lathrop said shelter is near the top of people's priorities, including heat and "especially if people have people they're trying to take care of."

"It gets emotional very fast," he added. "It's difficult for us as neighbors and human beings that we might let anyone down."

On top of regulars, Lathrop's crews delivered fuel to more than 200 new customers over the last two weeks, including several residents who got through to Best Energy's four phone lines that were staffed for 10 hours a day over the weekend.

"You miss a (delivery) day at Christmas and New Year's, but oil burners don't know that," he said. "We haven't seen a stretch of weather like this in two decades. I'm tired, man."

Lathrop said delayed barges and tankers have held up his drivers at terminals in Groton, Providence and Coventry, R.I., for five or six hours at a time.

He added that busy signals are common for oil companies because it's "actually more expensive for oil to operate in this environment."

"There's lots of overtime, lots of equipment maintenance," he said. "Revenue goes up, but costs go up too. That's why some companies stop answering their phones."

Christian Herb, president of the Connecticut Energy Marketers Association, said even though customers might have to wait a little longer, "it's a demand emergency" rather than a supply shortage.

Herb noted the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration recently issued a regional interstate waiver on rules limiting the number of hours drivers can be out delivering fuel.

"It's from West Virginia to Maine," he said. "This is not isolated to New London or Connecticut."

Herb added surges in natural gas prices have led utilities and large commercial users to switch to oil.

"We have many customers that we didn't have four weeks ago," Herb said, including universities and hospitals while oil vendors typically serve "Mr. and Mrs. Smith on Main Street or the local bakery. We're stepping in to make sure the lights are on."

But Herb acknowledged the harsh weather has meant some customers, even those with scheduled automatic deliveries, "may fall through the cracks. But they'll be the first we catch up on."

In Norwich, Human Services Director Lee Ann Gomes said customers were trying to make use of emergency energy assistance but couldn't get hold of vendors, who "couldn't answer or were way too busy."

"Last week was just a mess because of freezing cold temperatures and people's furnaces breaking down," Gomes said. "It's brutally cold and when your heat goes out, it's not long before you're literally freezing in your apartment. Thank God all of our homeless people are well taken care of. We all pull together when stuff like this happens."

Eversource Energy, which serves almost 230,000 customers in Connecticut, set a company record for natural gas delivery on New Year's Eve, sending 414,133 MMBtu (millions of British thermal units) of natural gas to residents dealing with the bitter cold.

"It's about an increase of 3 percent (over the previous record set last February)," said Mitch Gross, an Eversource spokesman. "The bottom line is demand remains high, but we continue to do very well in terms of supply and meeting the demand."

Leslie Anderson of the Propane Gas Association of New England said some companies received more than 1,000 calls per day last week.

"There is not a propane shortage in New England," she said. "Our members are working long hours to make sure to take care of customers."

Brenda Watson, Operation Fuel's acting director, encouraged residents not to "scramble at the last minute" to apply for assistance or schedule deliveries.

"We encourage folks to keep a close eye on their oil gauges, especially if you have seniors who are neighbors or relatives. Give them a call and ask them to check, or if you can, check it for them," Watson said.

She added that Operation Fuel, which has provided assistance to more than 630 households this season, is still taking applications. To apply, residents can call 211 or go to operationfuel.org.

b.kail@theday.com