RICHMOND, Vt. -
If the storm does hit us, are you prepared? Perhaps a better question, are the stores prepared?
I checked out a couple of grocery and hardware stores to see if they're filled with the supplies we need. The store owners who I spoke with say they're all keeping a close eye on the storm, and have many of the necessities on hand, but because this storm has come on so quickly, many stores have had to put in some rush orders.
Friday, the sun was shining, the skies were blue, so for new mom, Jessica Morgan, a storm of historic proportions doesn't feel like it's in the forecast.
"It's beautiful," Morgan said.
But after living through Tropical Storm Irene, the thought of being trapped in her home without power, again, come Tuesday, has her and her sister worried about Hurricane Sandy.
"It's a little nerve wracking," Ebby Rylant said.
That's why they're stocking up, the Eastern Champlain Valley could see major wind damage, so I swung by the Richmond Market to see what items were in high demand. Water is one of them.
"On a normal Friday, I might have ordered six or seven cases so we increased it to about 50 cases," Mike Comeau said, Owner of Richmond Market and Beverage.
Lowe's has plenty of leaf blowers, chainsaws for fallen trees, batteries, flashlights, but what about generators?
I asked the Lowe's store manager, "If 50 people came in today and needed generators, would we have them?" Kevin Rycroft said, "Not at this moment."
Home Depot has sold out, but both stores have orders in place should this area be hit hard by Sandy.
"A lot of people with generators will need gas cans, sub pumps, unfortunately with a lot of rain comes a lot of flooding," Rycroft added.
Speaking of generators, the market in Richmond doesn't have one that can power the whole store.
"We could lose half of what we have," Comeau said.
So for moms like Jessica, she continues to hope for the best... "hoping that it doesn't hit, but if it does, we are as prepared as possible," Morgan said.
One other quick reminder about generators, it's important to set them up properly and give them enough ventilation, because if you don't carbon monoxide poisoning can happen.
As far as power outages, Green Mountain Power says it has additional crews on standby.
