'Getting ready to buckle down': New Orleanians rush for supplies and gas ahead of Francine (2024)

In the crammed Costco parking lot early Monday, Taffy Butler-Johnson loaded her trunk with bottled water and non-perishable food in preparation for Tropical Storm Francine. A New Orleans East resident, Butler-Johnson said she wasn't too concerned about the storm, expected to make landfall near Lafayette late Wednesday as a Category 2 hurricane, but wanted to be prepared just in case.

“We’re getting ready to buckle down for 48 hours,” she said in the crowded parking lot, as people exited the store with carts loaded with water, ice and canned food among other groceries. “Hopefully all we get is the rain and wind.”

After battling the crowds at Costco, Butler-Johnson said she was headed to Winn-Dixie for more supplies, especially Spagghetios for her seven-year-old son, who is autistic and particular about the food he eats.

“To us, it’s just another day,” she said.

Thousands of metro area residents spent the day preparing for the storm by stocking up on batteries and flashlights from Home Depot and non-perishable groceries from Walmart. Long lines also formed as residents rushed to gas up their cars.

While the forecast models predicted landfall somewhere along Louisiana's central coast, the New Orleans area could still see significant effects, including powerful winds, flooding and power outages. Those with memories of recent storms, ranging from Ida to Katrina, were not taking any chances.

'Literally a fortress'

Near Butler-Johnson in the busy Costco lot, Allison Akhter, 37, rolled her shopping cart of water, toilet paper and snacks for her kids. Due to the sturdy construction of her house, which she described as “three bricks thick,” Akhter said she’s not worried. Aside from stocking up on food, she feels totally prepared.

“Our house is literally a fortress,” she said. “Every hurricane, totally fine.”

But others were still searching for supplies to prepare, according to Charles Molinaro, who works at Home Depot on South Claiborne. By Monday morning, he said he had already noticed an uptick in people buying flashlights, rain suits, ponchos and batteries.

In the Home Depot parking lot, Carl Kirksey said he doesn’t need to prepare much because he has a generator in his home. But if Francine was forecasted to be bigger than a Category 1, as it was expected to be on Monday morning when The Times-Picayune spoke to him, he would leave.

“I’d have been gone already,” he said.

By Monday afternoon, Francine was expected to make landfall as a Category 2 hurricane.

In the Walmart parking lot on Tchoupitoulas, Kirk Zeno, standing beside a shopping cart loaded with water, expressed optimism about the city’s ability to withstand the storm, especially in contrast to the devastation of Hurricane Katrina.

“I’m feeling good,” he said. “Ain’t no hurricane going to hit like Katrina. We could stand a hurricane.”