Supplies Run Low As Residents Brace For Hurricane

If it weren't for a humid haze hanging over Maple Avenue on Friday night, the sight inside Vienna grocery stores could have easily been mistaken for a rush before a mid-winter blizzard.

Residents flocked to local stores on Friday afternoon and into the evening, clearing shelves early, or, facing long lines after they left work.

Giant Supermarket had every lane open around 6 p.m., though its water supply was already gone. Checkout lines stretched back into toiletry and beauty aisles as other shoppers rushed to toss soda, juice, ice cream and chips into their carts.

Rite Aid had a few stray bottles left on the shelves; was down to two small stacks of 24-pack bottles. At the back of the near Madison High School, a few jugs of water were hidden for customers who stopped in for slurpies, wine and cheese.

Water and packaged foods were the fastest things to fly from shelves, but there were a few fun surprises: Chicken pickings were slim at Giant. Magruders had completely run out of hummus. And at Trader Joes in Fairfax, just three bananas remained on the shelf.

Twitter user Map408psu said the "pickings were slim" at Wegmans in Fairfax, too. According to a store cashier, he said,Friday's revenue target was $800,000. On a normal Friday, it's $450,000.

set up a table with batteries and flashlights at the front of the store. After midnight on Saturday, they posted on Facebook they had received another shipment and were fully restocked for its usual 8 a.m. opening.

When asked if he thought the store would receive more water overnight, a manager at Giant let out a tight smile, glancing from the customer service register he had opened with the hope of moving things along.

"Gosh, I hope so," he said.

Follow us , starting around 11 a.m. and continuing through the day.