As snow began to fall late Monday morning, Vineyarders were out and about preparing for the winter storm expected to hit the Island beginning Monday night.
At around 10: 30 a.m., there was a line of cars and people with yellow and red gas containers waiting to fill up at the Edgartown Shell station.
“They are just getting that madness in their head, I think, of coming in and getting tons of gas, like the world is ending,” said manager Terri Hakala. She said there was much more business than normal at the station Monday. “People have that frenzied sort of energy about them, for sure.”
During storms the market often sells out of dairy products and bread, in addition to higher gas sales, Ms. Hakala said. Water and batteries are also popular items. The market stocked up beforehand.
The Shell station will try to open tomorrow. Ms. Hakala said she lives in the neighborhood and so she can walk to work. “I might open early to get some coffee to the plowers,” she said.
Ben Scheffer, who was visiting from Maine, left with two five gallon containers filled with gas for the generator at his parents’ house in Katama. “You gotta make sure the generator is all stocked,” he said.
At Granite Ace Hardware in Edgartown, workers were unloading large bags of wood pellets and ice-melt from a truck and stacking them up near the register, where there was a line of people buying batteries and other supplies.
But not everyone was there for the same reason. “I actually came in for dog bones,” said Mike Savoy of Edgartown. “And I saw everybody else buying batteries, so I thought I ought to buy some batteries too.” He said the bones would keep his dogs busy for the next couple of days.
The store sold out of shovels by around 11 a.m. Audrey Davenport, who was working the register, said they had sold more than 25 shovels Monday and more were on the way. Other products leaving the shelves included sleds, salt, flashlights and candles. Ms. Davenport said that one person bought some terra cotta pots to make a space heater with candles.
At Island Alpaca, the alpacas were quietly munching on their food as the snow fell around them. Some were outside and some were in the barn. Employee Patricia Valenti said all of the alpacas will later be brought into the barn. “Right now they are enjoying the snow,” she said.
There was a full parking lot at Shirley’s True Value in Vineyard Haven, where there had been a steady stream of business since the store opened at 8:30 a.m. People were buying sleds, batteries, ice-melt, lamp oil, shovels, scrapers, brooms. “It’s been nonstop,” said Debbie Healy, who has worked at Shirley’s for 42 years. “It’s like a summer day.” She said it wasn’t clear yet whether the store will be open tomorrow. “Usually we go by whether the state wants places closed or open,” she said. “We just play it by ear, depending on what’s happening.”
“Some people panic and buy lots of stuff,” she said. “Lots people who have been through the storms just buy the amount that they know they are going to need.”
“It’s kind of like the Fourth of July weekend at the end of January.”
Raleigh Jones of West Tisbury bought enough candles to light her house, anticipating a power outage. “Any type of wind, the power goes out,” she said. She had gone grocery shopping and filled up on gas yesterday to avoid the crowds. “We knew it was coming,” she said.
Emily Galligan of West Tisbury and her young son Aiden were buying things to keep busy during the storm. They had already stocked up on other supplies and were planning to plant herbs in mason jars to put in the window at their house.
Vineyard Scripts was also busy, with the phone ringing and people coming in to fill their prescriptions and stock up on flu medicine. Down the street, at least 12 cars were lined up at the Tisbury Shell station.
Cronig’s Market in Vineyard Haven was bustling, with people gathering supplies for the storm and workers restocking the shelves with batteries and other items. Dick Dormitzer and Lois Reasoner were doing their shopping for the week, anticipating another storm on Friday.
Sarah Strelecki, one of the store managers, said the pre-storm rush started yesterday. She said the item most in demand was water, along with batteries and flashlights.
“You’d be surprised the amount of food people buy, just wanting to make sure their cabinets are full, regardless of whether or not we have power,” she added. Bread is another item that goes quickly, she said. Commercial bread deliveries to the store were delayed due to the storm, and the store’s daily trailer delivery was cancelled for tomorrow.
About five cars were lined up at the Citgo station in Vineyard Haven, where there was only one gas station attendant on duty. Dan Garde, owner of Alyssa Lane Landscaping, plows people’s driveways around the Island and was fueling up his plow truck. He said it was tough to get gas today with all the traffic. “I’m usually out all night, and the morning, until the snow stops,” he said. “And then you just keep going from there.”
Shantol Foster, who was working the register, said it has been busy all day. “We didn’t know it was going to be this crazy,” she said. “It’s like summer.”
View a photo gallery of the Island before the storm.
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