Anxious shoppers across the US line up at stores to stockpile water, toilet paper

Americans are continuing to flock to stores this weekend, standing on endless lines and loading up shopping carts with supplies, preparing for the worst as the US coronavirus infection and death toll numbers creep upwards. 

In the US, there have been 381 confirmed coronavirus cases reported in 26 states. Nineteen people have died so far. 

In Florida, where there have been seven coronavirus cases and two deaths, shoppers were seen lining up in the morning at a Costco in Miami, before the store opened, empty shopping carts ready to go. 

Once inside, the shoppers were quick to fill up their carts. 

Shoppers in Miami, Florida, were seen piling up outside a Costco Saturday morning as they waited for the store to open

Once the doors opened, the Miami Costco shoppers were quick to rush inside so they could buy their supplies

Long lines of people were spotted outside the Costco in Miami, waiting to for their chance to get inside on Saturday morning 

Inside the Costco in Miami, shoppers loaded up their carts and then had to stand on another long line to check out 

A shopper is seen here, maxing out her bottled water and paper towel quota, while also stocking up on canned foods

The Miami Costco had to institute a two item limit for certain products that people have been hoarding, including rice 

Shoppers are seen here at the Atlanta Costco, carts laden down with paper towels, toilet paper, snack foods and more 

It was a similar story in Georgia, where shoppers at an Atlanta Costco were quick to buy up toilet paper and paper towels

Atlanta Costco shoppers had cleared out an entire pallet of Clorox wipes. Clorox wipes and Lysol products are among the EPA’s recently released list of cleaners that can combat the spread of coronavirus on surfaces 

Shoppers are seen here outside the Costco in Everett, Massachusetts, where they were seen stocking up on bottled water, paper towels, breakfast foods and beer 

The Everett Costco is just miles away from where a school was recently closed down after a student was confirmed to have coronavirus. Shoppers at the Costco are seen here filling their carts with fresh and canned foods

A woman wears a face mask as she loads her car up with toilet paper, bottled water and food that she bought at the Costco

Although it’s not unusual for Costco patrons to buy in bulk, many shoppers were seen pushing carts laden down with mass quantities of toilet paper and paper towels, as well as food products with long shelf lives, including peanut butter, instant noodles and spaghetti sauce, as well as canned goods. 

Dozens of bottles of water were also high on their shopping lists. 

To combat the seeming hoarding of supplies and make it fair for the long line of customers who had not yet had a chance to supermarket sweep their way through the store, the Miami Costco had imposed purchase limits on select items. 

Among those products that members were only allowed to buy two of – due to a ‘shortage in supplies’ were disinfectant wipes, Lysol spray, adult and baby diapers, baby wipes, exam gloves, Softsoap, water, sugar and rice.

It was a similar story in Georgia, where there have been two confirmed cases of coronavirus, but no deaths. 

At the Costco in Atlanta Saturday morning, shoppers were seen standing on long checkout lines, with their carts filled with paper towels, toilet paper and bottled water. 

The cleaning supplies aisle showed empty spaces as shoppers bought enormous quantities of disinfecting products. At least one whole pallet of Clorox wipes had been cleared out.  

Shoppers at the Target in Everett had all but cleaned out the vitamin and immunity product shelves by Saturday morning

A shopper at the Everett Target is confronted with bare shelves while seeking out cleaning supplies. This, despite the store having imposed a six-per-person limit on various items, including cleaning supplies and hand sanitizer 

The Walmart in Willow Grove, Pennsylvania was running low on paper products, leaving shoppers scrambling for tissue paper

As at other stores around the country, the shelves at the Willow Grove Walmart had been picked mostly clean of paper products and cleaning supplies

A Walmart shopper in Willow Grove is seen here trying to make a decision between the remaining cleaning products 

Even a Whole Foods in New York City showed signs of having been ransacked for toilet paper and paper towels Saturday

Many of the people in search of supplies had actually outsourced the work to personal shoppers at the Whole Foods

Personal shoppers are seen at the NYC whole foods, filling up shopping carts with orders that had been placed

As of Saturday, the United States has 381 confirmed cases of coronavirus across 26 states. There have been 19 deaths

Several varieties of Clorox Disinfecting wipes were among the list of cleaning supplies released Thursday, that the EPA has determined are likely to be effective in combating the spread of coronavirus on surfaces. 

Other cleaning products include Lysol brand Heavy-Duty Cleaner Disinfectant Concentrate, Purell Professional Surface Disinfectant Wipes and Sani-Prime Germicidal Spray. 

The CDC still maintains that washing hands with soap and water for 20 seconds is still the best way to prevent the spread of coronavirus, as person-to-person transfer through droplets, as in sneezing, coughing and spitting, is the predominant way it is spread. 

Further north, in Massachusetts, where four coronavirus cases have been confirmed, stores also saw shoppers scrambling for supplies. 

At the Costco in Everett, shopping carts were seen being dragged out to cars, laden down with the maximum amount of bottles of water, paper towels and toilet paper.

Shoppers also grabbed multiple boxes of breakfast foods, like cereal and oatmeal, fresh and frozen foods and beer. 

The Target in Everett – two miles away from where a school had been closed following a student being diagnosed with coronavirus – seemed to have been shopped out by earlier hordes, who had already picked the shelves clean by Saturday morning. 

Those shoppers had ransacked vitamins and immunity-support and cleaning supplies, despite the store having imposed a six-per-person limit on disinfect wipes, hand sanitizers and face wipes.  

Canny shoppers had also hit Everett’s Home Depot, buying up all the face masks and scooping up plastic gloves, as well.  

Hard-hit California also saw masses of people flocking to big box stores like this Costco in Van Nuys on Saturday morning

People were forced to stand on long lines with empty shopping carts as they waited to get inside the Van Nuys Costco

Once inside the Van Nuys Costco, shoppers were quick to grab the maximum on paper towels, toilet paper and bottled water

A Van Nuys Costco shopper is seen here, contending with her overflowing shopping cart as a package of paper towels tumbled to the ground. Her cart was filled with bottled water, more paper towels, toilet paper and baby wipes

Customers in the Van Nuys Costco had to stand on long lines. They are seen her with almost identical shopping carts, filled with the maximum amount allowed of toilet paper, paper towels and bottled water

The Van Nuys Costco created a separate water and paper towel line, to ensure that  people only took the allowed amounts

Customers are seen here, waiting to pay, alongside their carts full of paper towels, bleach and bottled water

A woman at the Van Nuys Costco gave up on a shopping cart and used a trolley to carry her stockpile bleach, detergent, baby wipes, plastic bags, tissue paper and cereal to the cash register

Van Nuys Costco shoppers were seen carting around stacks of supplies that were almost as tall as they were

A grinning Van Nuys Costco shopper is seen here with his cache of paper towels, bottled water and Gatorade

Hundreds shoppers were seen lining up outside the Van Nuys Costco waiting to get inside to make their purchases Saturday

A woman is seen here exiting the Costco with her purchases, while other are still waiting to get inside Saturday morning

Many of the Van Nuys Costco shoppers were seen with baskets full of the exact same quantity and variety of goods

Bare shelves were also spotted in Pennsylvania, which currently has two reported coronavirus cases. 

At the Walmart in Willowgrove, nothing but yawning black shelf space greeted customers in search of disinfectant cleaning supplies and hand soap. The toilet paper and tissue aisle had also been depleted, with shoppers scrambling to pick up whatever was left.  

Even a Whole Foods in New York City – which 76 coronavirus cases – was hit by people hoarding paper products and cleaning supplies, although it seemed like most of the shopping was being done by proxy.  

Hard-hit California – which has 80 cases and one death – also saw shoppers flocking to big box stores in search of coronavirus supplies. 

At the Costco in Van Nuys, shoppers lined up around the massive store, waiting for their chance to go inside and grab what they could. 

There, it was not an uncommon sight Saturday, to see people carting around stacks of toilet paper, cases of water and packages of paper towels that rivaled their own heights or overwhelmed their shopping carts. 

In an effort to maintain order, the store had had to create a special line for water and paper towels for its hundreds and hundreds of customers looking to stock up.

Employees had also been stationed at cordoned off areas containing the most popular ‘essential’ supplies, so that they could ensure customers were only taking two of those items.   

Read more at DailyMail.co.uk