Burgeo making do with available food after flood and highway closure
People are used to going without in Burgeo, store owner says
People in Burgeo are making more out of less after being cut off following the recent heavy rain and flooding, something one grocery store owner in the town says is nothing new.
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Wayne Keeping owns Huntsview Market and says things are not as bad as they might seem.
"We haven't reached crisis mode here yet because, of course, we still have some root vegetables up on our shelves," said Keeping.
People [haven't] really hit dire straits — not yet at least.- Wayne Keeping
"We have turnips and cabbages and carrots, we have some fruits and vegetables still, so it tells us that people [haven't] really hit dire straits — not yet at least."
Keeping's store is out of bread and fresh milk, and while it may not please everyone's palate, he still has about 3,000 cans of milk for sale.
"Not everybody's got my taste, and not everybody wants to drink canned milk, but no, we still have groceries here in Burgeo," he said.
'Just an inconvenience'
He said there are several grocery stores open in the community and shoppers aren't overly anxious about supplies, as the road into the town could be reopened by early next week.
"They're not hoarding groceries, but I think the word around town is that we could possibly have one lane of road open by Monday morning," said Keeping.
"We have been cut off for weeks at a time in the past, this is not the first time that this has happened, I'm thinking that people here are a little more seasoned."
They're not hoarding groceries...we've been cut off for weeks at a time in the past.- Wayne Keeping
The town often only receives freight once a week, so Keeping said it's not unusual for his store to run out of bread by the end of the week at the best of times.
"People are used to knowing that they're going to have to go two or three days without a particular item. If we have freight come Monday morning, it will only be just an inconvenience, really."
Keeping is hopeful a few loaves might get carried in on the emergency helicopter service flying residents in and out of Burgeo, but in the meantime he's happy to stick to canned milk for a little while longer.
With files from the Corner Brook Morning Show