Big Demand For Toilet Paper And Guns

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BEECH GROVE, Ind. — Some may be shopping for toilet paper but if the last 72 hours at Beech Grove Firearms on the south side of Indianapolis is any indication, gun sales are spiking throughout Indiana as well.

The reason being that the coronavirus has people preparing in the event they need to defend themselves. That’s the theory of Greg Burge, who owns Beech Grove Firearms. He tells WISH-TV in the last three days he has sold off more than 40-percent of his inventory.

“In the last 72 hours it has been predominately ammunition, handguns, and home defense-based shotguns,” Burge said. “On Friday we also saw a surge in AR-15 sales.”

Burge said the influx of business started shortly after President Trump declared a national public health emergency because of the coronavirus on Friday, Mar. 13. He said the shop was packed from open to close between Friday and Monday.

“If there was anyone product that shocked me was how much gun cleaning supplies, we went through,” he added. “That tells me that folks are kind of planning for this emergency or crisis the country has found itself it, I think they are thinking long term.”

Burge said it was surprising since most times he sees a surge in sales around election time. He said the last time he saw a surge like this was in the days following the election of President Barack Obama in 2008.

Burge also said that in spite of the influx of gun purchases and fears over a shortage of personnel at the state and federal level to conduct background checks on those purchases, he said the process of getting background checks done has not been affected.