Tonawanda, N.Y. (WBEN) - Tonawanda's travel ban was lifted on Monday at 7 a.m. as well as a few other towns in Erie County and that meant many were able to get out to their local grocery store for the first time since the blizzard struck to pick up essential food they need.
Not everyone found what they needed as they navigated to the store and then up and down the aisles picked over by throngs of shoppers. "No eggs or milk, but I was able to get bread, but they're running low," says Paul from Tonawanda, who went to restock the essentials for the first time since Friday after running a little low during this weekend storm.
Sources say that the power went out at the Tonawanda TOPS Market on Friday and as a result they had to throw out some of their refrigerated product. A sign was posted that said they lost food due to the storm, as nearly three quarters of the final aisle was bare on Tuesday.
However, that seemed to be the only concern. The rest of the aisles were pretty well stocked excluding the refrigerated and bread items as many residents were pleasantly surprised to find out that their local grocery store was finally open once again.
"It was a surprise to me that this store was open, I thought it would be closed, but it's fantastic that it is because it came in handy, we were running low," said Tyler, a Tonawanda resident.
The store was packed with people, "It was crowded, it was a little hectic in there as this is probably the only store open around here," Paul from Tonawanda notes.
Another reason some panic ensued resulted from one person in the store having a seizure in the store in the early afternoon. Tonawanda Fire and Police were quickly on the scene, soon followed by the Twin City Ambulance. It is unknown if it was a result of the cold temperatures or weather related.
Most Tonawanda streets were plowed Christmas day and many people that I talked to seemed pretty pleased with the snow removal work. "So far, I feel like they're doing a good job, we haven't lost any power, thankfully," said Tyler from Tonawanda. "The street so far have been decently clear. It's the best they can do at this point."
In terms of power outages, the only person that I talked to who didn't have any was Charlotte from North Tonawanda, who was shopping for her friend and neighbors, "Power was out Friday morning, but came back on by noon the same day," she said. "This was my first time back out since Friday, the streets are clear."
Orchard Park also had their ban lifted and the local deli, BEERZ Food Shop & Grill has opened up and selling out, "[They're coming in] for everything and anything. Anything from milk, bread, butter, your basic essentials and cold cuts," says Daniel Kajngi, operator of the store. The bread sold out fast, he predicted the milk and eggs were next.
Some good news for those who still have their local grocer closed, Wegman's just announced that their Niagara and Erie County stores will be opening on Tuesday, December 27 at 10 a.m., except Wegmans’ West Seneca store at 370 Orchard Park Road, which will open late Tuesday afternoon.
Tops Markets said in a statement late Monday, "Tops intends to continue to safely re-open as many of its Erie County (NY) stores as possible on Tuesday, December 27th. All Tops locations outside Erie County (NY) will open as scheduled."
"Thank you for your patience and understanding as we work to reopen our stores to serve our communities," the release said.