Polk County was buzzing Thursday as residents rushed to local stores for emergency supplies in advance of the expected arrival of Hurricane Dorian.
Traffic in Polk County buzzed as shoppers hurried to get emergency supplies of food and water Thursday in preparation for the expected arrival of Hurricane Dorian.
Publix on Highway 60 in Lake Wales people had lined up outside 6:30 am
“Sales were up 99% yesterday from the day before, they said,” Bachelder noted. “Today will be bigger. I was able to get water, ice and all the food supplies I was looking for.”
But not everyone was so lucky. Stephanie Wall of Lakeland left the Target store with main need — water.
“They were completely out,” she said.
a buggy full of paper towels, but she got everything except for the visit’s
Steve Thompson, disaster program manager at the American Red Cross of Central Florida, warned people should “get prepared.”
“It will take 72 hours at least for emergency supplies to reach the area post-storm,” he told The Ledger on Thursday.
Walmarts in Lake Wales, Winter Haven and Lakeland were running low on water supplies or were totally out because of the onslaught of people out shopping.
Casey Staheli, Walmart senior manager of national media relations, said Thursday that Walmart is staying closely connected to its operators in the field to help make sure they are stocking the appropriate items and keeping track of shipments to deliver for its customers.
“We have emergency support teams dedicated to helping our stores during critical events such as this one,” said Staheli.
“We have activated the Emergency Operations Center (EOC) and the Walmart home office in Bentonville, Arkansas, to support our associates in the field,” Staheli said, adding that the EOC will work directly with logistics, store operations and other teams within the business to ensure “we’re aligned to our support plans.”
Staheli also said that the safety of the drivers was important as well, as they cannot drive during the hurricane.
A Walmart clerk was overheard telling a Polk County Sheriff’s Office deputy that Walmart is expecting more water Friday, and added that “people are starting to become a little more impatient.”