Richmond,
VA:

Folks
across Central Virginia, the Northern Neck and much of the East
Coast started stocking up at the grocery store as forecasters
warned of the looming “Frankenstorm.”

“It
is a little surprising. I didn’t think it would come
that close to the coast,” Connie Davidson told CBS 6 News’ Sandra
Jones.

Davidson
was getting a jump on Hurricane Sandy and stocking up on basics,
including water and batteries.

She’s was
just one of numerous customers Friday at Pleasants Hardware.

“I got an
oil lamp, got a portable castle iron. I got a portable heater,”
Carl Shiles said. “It’s going to be getting cool next week – and
if we lose power, I have a 92-year-old mother-in-law.”

“During the
storm, we figure we’ll have gas. So, we’re going
to get a lot of things that we can to just pop in the oven and
be done with it,” he said.

…

New
Jersey:

Foodtown – Middletown, New Jersey – Sunday, Oct. 28,
2012 (via Twitter)

Preparations
ranged from mandatory evacuations ordered by Gov. Christie for
portions of the Jersey Shore to residents preparing for
long power outages by cleaning shelves of water, batteries and
bread. New Jersey’s utility companies also were preparing
for a massive number of power outages.

People turned
to social media to report bare shelves in grocery stores and the
early effects of the storm in their communities, including strong
winds and even flooding in some Shore towns.

…

Brooklyn:

Items such
as flashlights, D batteries and bottled water have already run
low in many locations, as have bread and nonperishable food items.
Other items that may run low include tarps and pumps.

Grocery
store lines in Bushwick, Brooklyn, and undoubtedly throughout
the city were stretching through the aisles this evening. According
to ABC News, one Trader Joe’s line just to enter the store wrapped
around the block.

Also,
FreshDirect has cancelled deliveries tonight, causing more people
to head to actual grocery stores than usual.

…

Montgomery,
Pennsylvania:

Throughout
the area, grocery stores and gas stations were crowded Sunday
as residents stocked up on necessities.

The lines
at the pumps at Sunoco on Valley Forge Road at Whites Road were
three or four cars deep late Sunday morning, and the cars trying
to get in and out were causing jams in the parking lot and on
Valley Forge.

Denise Bohne-Schmidt,
a nine-year employee of the Sunoco, said the gas station ran out
of regular gasoline Friday, Saturday and Sunday. When it runs
out, a truck comes to the station to replenish the supply, but
that sometimes takes hours.

She
said she’s never seen the gas station so busy, not even before
a snowstorm.

“People
are complaining, screaming, yelling, they’re yelling at me and
there have been fights between customers – it’s been a mess.”

At Weis Market
on Valley Forge Road in Lansdale, manager Mike Ryan said that
sales are up 29 percent since Friday, with most people buying
cases of bottled water and bread. He had three extra deliveries,
but the bread supply was almost depleted and bottled water was
dwindling.

“People who
have well water are nervous, because if the power goes out, they
won’t have water,” he said.

Arlene Widman
of Lansdale had several cases of bottled water in her cart for
herself and her two adult daughters.

“We don’t
know how had it’s going to be. That’s the issue,” she said. “From
what they’re saying it’s going to be a doozy.”