There's still more than 30 hours before the first flakes fall, but this season's first major snow storm has people across the area getting ready.
At Ayd hardware in Towson, the shelves are stocked. Workers say the store has been hammered. People are stopping by to make sure they're ready to battle Mother Nature.
"Getting a shovel,” Emily Sweet said. “We need it for the snow coming this weekend, we can't find ours from last year."
Joy Freedman loaded the back of her car with bags of ice melt.
"I'm lucky to get this because I figured it would all be gone by tomorrow,” she said. “So I might as well stock up now and have it."
It's been a mild winter so far, but the first snow storm of the season could pack a punch. For some, it's a welcomed change of pace.
"Excited, we want the snow, and its coming on the weekend so its perfect timing,” Sweet said.
Folks are also focusing on their cars. Drivers are getting new tires put on, checking their batteries, and filling up on oil and wiper fluid.
The potential blizzard could be a bump in business for the Baltimore Collision Center near Charles Village.
"As in most big storms, I'm sure we'll see an uptick of work,” Owner Matt Kumpar said. “We are seeing some of our customers coming in looking for some basic maintenance tips and ideas, obviously everybody’s trying to get ready for the storm."
Local grocery stores have also been swamped. Workers at the Safeway on York Road say it's been non-stop. And the aisles will only get more crowded as we get closer to the storm.
"We stopped by to shop because we just got back from vacation, little did we know there's a snow storm coming so everything's gone,” Missy Gray said. “Except toilet paper, there's a lot of toilet paper here."
As always the bread, milk and eggs are hot ticket items. People are plucking them off the shelves.
"I noticed the bread aisle looked pretty good, picked clean pretty good, and the ice melt out front was almost gone, so got to pick up a couple of those too," Brian Carter said.
And with so many shoppers stocking up, the lines to check out mean there's no such thing as a quick trip to the store.
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