Loki
01-06-2010, 07:59 AM
Panic-buying as heavy snow hits (http://www.metro.co.uk/news/807921-panic-buying-as-heavy-snow-hits)
Shoppers besieged supermarkets last night as forecasters warned a blanket of snow up to 40cm deep was about to descend on Britain.
Stocks of thermal underwear, Wellington boots, ready-made meals and even cat litter were flying off the shelves as the cold weather headed south.
One shopper, 54-year-old Carol Cooper, said her local Sainsbury’s near Woking, Surrey, had been left bare. ‘It was absolutely horrendous,’ she added. ‘There were hardly any vegetables or meat left and the milk and bread stocks looked pretty low. Staff were directing customers to the tills because it was so busy.’
Asda saw a 1,000 per cent rise in sales of thermal underwear and a 129 per cent leap in purchases of vacuum flasks.
Sainsbury’s spokesman Tom Parker said: ‘We are seeing people stock up on certain items because of the cold weather. It is the obvious things like salt, cat litter, soups and warming meals, and it is happening all over the country.’ In Essex, Budgens said shop takings were triple the normal.
Tesco said soup sales were up 80 per cent on two weeks ago, when the last major snowfall hit Britain.
It added that there was no need for customers to panic as deliveries were getting through as normal.
Halfords said it had seen sales of snow chains and sleeping bags rise.
The big freeze brought deaths, mass travel delays and school closures yesterday as northern England, Scotland and Wales were worst hit.
Dozens of flights were delayed or cancelled and major airports, including Heathrow and Gatwick, closed for several hours. Rail journeys from London to Leeds and Glasgow were disrupted.
Manchester saw 18cm of snow but the Met Office expects falls of up to 40cm – 16 inches – across parts of London, the home counties and the south coast today.
Shoppers besieged supermarkets last night as forecasters warned a blanket of snow up to 40cm deep was about to descend on Britain.
Stocks of thermal underwear, Wellington boots, ready-made meals and even cat litter were flying off the shelves as the cold weather headed south.
One shopper, 54-year-old Carol Cooper, said her local Sainsbury’s near Woking, Surrey, had been left bare. ‘It was absolutely horrendous,’ she added. ‘There were hardly any vegetables or meat left and the milk and bread stocks looked pretty low. Staff were directing customers to the tills because it was so busy.’
Asda saw a 1,000 per cent rise in sales of thermal underwear and a 129 per cent leap in purchases of vacuum flasks.
Sainsbury’s spokesman Tom Parker said: ‘We are seeing people stock up on certain items because of the cold weather. It is the obvious things like salt, cat litter, soups and warming meals, and it is happening all over the country.’ In Essex, Budgens said shop takings were triple the normal.
Tesco said soup sales were up 80 per cent on two weeks ago, when the last major snowfall hit Britain.
It added that there was no need for customers to panic as deliveries were getting through as normal.
Halfords said it had seen sales of snow chains and sleeping bags rise.
The big freeze brought deaths, mass travel delays and school closures yesterday as northern England, Scotland and Wales were worst hit.
Dozens of flights were delayed or cancelled and major airports, including Heathrow and Gatwick, closed for several hours. Rail journeys from London to Leeds and Glasgow were disrupted.
Manchester saw 18cm of snow but the Met Office expects falls of up to 40cm – 16 inches – across parts of London, the home counties and the south coast today.