If the power goes out, will Lexington grocery stores close? Here’s what we know
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Lexington prepares for winter storm
Approximately 0.25-0.5 inches of ice is expected to blanket Lexington as well as parts of western and northern Kentucky.
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As the ice storm bears down on Kentucky, Gov. Andy Beshear has declared a state of emergency and asked people to stay off the roads if they can.
But what about grocery stores? Will they stay open?
The short answer is probably yes, but at least one Lexington store closed on Thursday ahead of the storm: Trader Joe’s posted online that the store isn’t open.
But both Kroger and Walmart say they plan to stay open.
“We have no plans at this time to close stores and have plans in place should we lose power,” said Kroger spokeswoman Erin Grant.
Cincinnati-based Kroger is the largest grocery chain in the country and has about a dozen locations in Lexington alone.
Ahead of the storm, Lexington stores were re-stocking as fast as they can but customers were finding shortages of staples like bread, milk and meat in some cases.
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Walmart has multiple locations with groceries in Lexington and also plans to remain open.
“With the probability of severe winter weather likely during the next few days, we understand our customers will rely on us for essential items to help manage the storm. We’ll continue following forecasts and will be prepared to serve our customers the best we can,” said Walmart corporate spokesman Charles Crowson in an email.
The Arkansas-based company has an emergency operations center that is monitoring the storm in real-time, he said.
“Understanding that the safety of our associates and customers is our top priority ... We’ll assess the status of our facilities and continue operating as long as it is safe to do so,” he said.
Meijer, which has two stores, likely will stay open.
“All of our stores have backup generators. It’s very rare that we’ve ever had to close a store due to weather,” said Meijer spokesman Frank Guglielmi. “We see very high volume in our stores prior to large storms. When the storms hit the stores are generally not that busy, but our store teams are in place for those who need us.”
Good Foods Co-op on Southland Drive plans to open for regular business hours on Thursday. Any changes will be posted on the store’s social media.
Other stores in Lexington include Aldi, The Fresh Market, Save-A-Lot, Sam’s Club and Costco. Check with individual stores to make sure they are open before you travel.
Most major groceries plan for outages and are prepared to handle the weather. However, lack of store staff or shortages of items can occur as travel is impacted.
This story was originally published February 3, 2022 at 10:20 AM.
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