The shelves of some small-town grocery stores and pharmacies are being stripped by out-of-town residents.
With the media full of images of shoppers in large communities lined up around the corner of big box stores, and row after row of empty shelves inside, some big city residents are flocking to small outlying communities in search of supplies.
What started as anecdotal stories circulating in small towns is now being confirmed by those on the front lines.
鈥淎bsolutely, people are coming from somewhere else,鈥� says an employee at I.D.A. Pharmacy in Ashcroft. The town of 1,600 people is located an hour鈥檚 drive from Kamloops, and about an hour and a half from Merritt and Lillooet.
鈥淭wo women from Merritt who have relatives here phoned them and asked if we had toilet paper in Ashcroft. They were told 鈥榶es鈥�, so they came with about 20 of their friends in several vehicles and loaded up on stuff.鈥�
She says that the 鈥渂ig six鈥� things people come looking for are toilet paper, hand sanitizer, rubbing alcohol, masks, gloves, and thermometers. The store has been making its own hand sanitizer, which has sold out twice, but toilet paper remains the number one item people are seeking.
鈥淚鈥檝e had people come up to me in the toilet paper aisle several times, telling me they鈥檙e from Merritt and Lillooet and they鈥檙e out of toilet paper there.鈥�
She says that most people have been understanding.
鈥淲e have a sign up saying two [packs] per person. On March 17, we found six packages of toilet paper in the back and put them out. A man and woman came up and one said, 鈥業 can buy two and you can buy two.鈥�
鈥淚 said that we have a lot of old age pensioners here, and asked if they could limit themselves to one each and they were absolutely fine.
鈥淧leasantness is a good way to get through these things.鈥�
Things may begin to change as of Thursday (March 26), following new rules set in place by the province. Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworth announced there would be limits set on how many of certain items you can buy, as well as fines of $25,000 鈥� and possible jail time 鈥� for resellers of medical and sanitizing supplies, personal protective equipment and food.
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Ashcroft Safety Mart has also seen an influx of people from outside the area, with the store manager noting he鈥檚 had people from Merritt, Lillooet, 100 Mile, and many from Kamloops.
鈥淭hey鈥檙e mostly here because the stores in their communities have empty shelves. They鈥檙e looking for hand wipes, toilet paper, sanitizers, canned goods, potatoes, flour, sugar and bread.鈥�
Traffic at the store is about twice as busy as usual, but shipments are not coming in as quickly as they normally would.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 understandable. All the suppliers and manufacturers have been caught off guard. A lot of our suppliers have seen their orders go up substantially and they鈥檙e behind the eight ball.
鈥淭hey weren鈥檛 prepared either. It鈥檚 not like a regular holiday like Christmas or Easter, where we start planning two months before for staffing and supplies. It should be no problem getting things, it will just take a little while to get everyone back on line.鈥�
At Clinton Budget Foods, about half-an-hour north of Ashcroft, new owner Nav Singh has seen people coming from out of town, as well as highway travellers driving between Kamloops or Vancouver and Prince George.
鈥淭he big cities are out of groceries so they鈥檙e stopping here to do a general shop.鈥�
The store has put a limit on toilet paper to make it more convenient for local seniors, but Singh says that otherwise people are finding everything they need. 鈥淲e鈥檙e good on stock.鈥�
The AG Foods grocery stores in Scotch Creek and Chase, east of Kamloops, are also seeing an influx of people from larger centres.
鈥淪ome people are telling us they鈥檙e from out of town,鈥� says an employee at the Scotch Creek store. 鈥淚鈥檝e noticed some new faces. Someone put it on Facebook that we have stock, and people are buying quite the buggy full.鈥�
At Freshmart in Lumby, 25 minutes east of Vernon, head cashier Jo-Ann Parr says that they have been coping with orders coming in only half-filled and up to two days late. Staff are working as fast as possible to restock the meat cooler, and toilet paper is flying off the shelves.
鈥淚t鈥檚 going out as fast as it鈥檚 coming in.鈥�
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An issue the store is facing is people from out of town coming to stock up.
鈥淲e鈥檙e getting people from Vernon and Kelowna coming out here,鈥� says Parr, who doesn鈥檛 think it鈥檚 fair that some Lumby citizens are going without because out-of-towners are stocking up.
鈥淲e鈥檙e trying to help our community,鈥� she says. 鈥淭here鈥檚 a lot of seniors here and families who have to wait until child tax comes in.鈥�
Grocery stores in Cherryville, east of Lumby, report that they have not been immune to the toilet paper craze, but Lori Petersen 鈥� a cashier at the Cherryville Emporium 鈥� says for now staff haven鈥檛 noticed a big difference. Frank鈥檚 General Store was sold out of toilet paper, Lysol wipes, and hand sanitizer, but other than that things have been normal, according to owner Lisa Schwartz.
In Enderby, between Salmon Arm and Vernon, the IGA and Red Basket grocery stores have experienced shortages.
鈥淭he products are coming in, but they鈥檙e just going out faster than they come in,鈥� Red Basket general manager Seng Phung says, adding that people don鈥檛 need to panic.
鈥淚t just takes time to stock and it takes time to order.鈥�
IGA assistant manager Matt Briard says the store is seeing shortages of a variety of items, including toilet paper, paper towels, Kleenex, hand sanitizer, Clorox wipes, bleach, tomatoes, beans, and more.
He notes that around 60 items were either vendor-shorted or out of stock in a recent order.
鈥淲e had half our order pretty well shorted.鈥�
In McBride, more than two hours east of Prince George, the manager of McBride AG Foods says he hasn鈥檛 noticed many people coming from the city, although some people who are heading to Prince George are stopping in.
However, he added that while local customers are buying a little bit more 鈥� which he says is understandable 鈥� they鈥檙e not overstocking and there鈥檚 no panic. Others who were interviewed for this article say that local customers have been overwhelmingly calm, good-natured, and understanding during a stressful time.
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With files from the Vernon Morning Star.
editorial@accjournal.ca
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