Grocery store supplies

LITTLE ROCK, AR - The power outages mean food in the refrigerator and freezer is spoiled. Now that most people's power is back on, they're trying to replenish their pantries.

Grocery stores had to toss a lot of product and many shelves are empty in the aisles. Edward's Food Giant at Otter Creek lost power and closed the store for nearly two days. A lot of the dairy products and meat spoiled.

Customers are clearing the shelves of what the store does have in stock. Customer Service Supervisor Cliff Brown says milk, eggs, and bread, are the most popular items people are purchasing. "Just the essentials to get by."

Brown says the store lost $14,000 in frozen food, plus all the meat and dairy products in the coolers. A fresh shipment came in on Saturday, but shoppers are taking items off the shelves just as fast as the store clerks can stock them. Brown says the store didn’t expect to have such a busy rush.

The next shipment of food comes in on Thursday, but shopper Kathy Harris says she can't wait that long. Harris cleaned out her fridge over the weekend and had to throw everything away. She says it was depressing to see so many meals of meat and vegetables go to waste. This is her second trip to the grocery store looking for basics to replenish her kitchen. "Eggs. Eggs were gone."

Chuck Randall says the majority of the food in his kitchen is perishable. "T-bone steaks, Ribeye steaks, chicken, you name it. Everything." But he says there's no use crying over rotten milk. "The only thing we lost was some ice cream."

Brandon Ragland says his family is out hundreds of dollars in groceries, but he's just so grateful the power is back on. Tonight, he and his family are celebrating with a New Year's feast and counting their blessings. "Some people are still without lights, so I'm blessed to have my family."

Edward's Food Giant expects it will take a few days to get back to normal. The store hasn't run out of anything yet, it's just running low on stock.