Walmart and Tops had many empty shelves throughout the week this week. Cereal, meat, cleaning supplies and toilet paper were all hard to find. OBSERVER Photo.

Walmart and Tops, once peaceful places to do weekly or bi-weekly grocery shopping are now destined to be ravaged and picked through by the public daily.

For the first time in years, Walmarts across the nation are closing through the night. Their new hours, differing greatly from their 24-hour schedule, is now limited to opening at 7 a.m. and closing at 8:30 p.m. Tops has also changed their hours, which are now 6 a.m. to 10 p.m.

In a statement from Walmart, they explain, “Walmart U.S. stores will adjust operating hours to 7 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. Stores that open later than 7 a.m. will continue their regular hours.

This will further help associates restock the shelves for customers while continuing to clean and sanitize the store. While the store hours change for customers, our associates will continue to have access to their regular scheduled shifts and full hours.”

Tops also released a statement, reading, “As we continue to do all we can to serve the needs of our customers, we will be changing our hours of operation from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. to restock and continue to maintain the increased sanitation levels in our stores.”

OBSERVER Photo.

Walking the aisles of Walmart earlier this week seemed very different than a normal shopping trip. There was a sense of fear in the air, with brim-full shopping carts whizzing by and at least five people in every grocery aisle.

There was no toilet paper, orange juice or soup in sight. Along with bleach and other cleaners being totally wiped out, there was no laundry detergent and batteries were nowhere to be found.

A lot of these customers had gloves and masks on, protecting themself from the possible exposure to the novel coronavirus. Some were even running through the store, only pausing to chuck various items into their cart.

Traveling down the medication aisle was a whole different ballgame — only various arbitrary medicines left, such as ZzzQuil, allergy medication and nasal sprays. All of the cold and flu pills and liquids were sold out. In this same area, flushable wipes, Q-Tips, masks, gloves and even tubes of toothpaste were all gone.

Due to the high demand and limited supply of some items, Walmart posted small signs throughout their store reading, “A limit of two per customer of the following items/categories: toilet paper, paper towels, cleaning products, hand sanitizer and baby wipes. We appreciate your cooperation.”

OBSERVER Photo.

Tops was just as barren in some aspects, with the toilet paper aisle completely picked clean of more than just toilet paper. Paper towels, baby wipes, napkins, and really any cleaning supplies were entirely out of stock.

Further walking through the Tops aisles, the hopes of making any kind of rice dish for dinner were all but squashed, as only a few bags remained; the soup and pasta aisles were also picked clean, with only select boxes of fettucine and cans of spicy chicken noodles left.

Sandwiches were also almost out of the question for a meal option, as a majority of the bread was also vacated from the shelves. Meats and vegetables are starting to build up once more, but slowly.

Some stores, like Dollar General, have dedicated the first hour of each shopping day to senior shoppers. “In keeping with the Company’s mission of ‘Serving Others,’ Dollar General wants to provide these at-risk customers with the ability to purchase the items they need and want at the beginning of each day to avoid busier and more crowded shopping periods,” the company stated.

Tops and Walmart have also joined in this movement, with Tops allowing seniors over 60 years old to have the store to themselves from 6 a.m. to 7:30 a.m and Walmart allowing customers 60 years and older to come on Tuesdays for an hour-long session without other customers, which will happen before the store opens, 6 a.m. to 7 a.m.

OBSERVER Photo.

“We know our older customers could be more vulnerable to the coronavirus and to better support them, Walmart is offering special shopping hours. From March 24 through April 28, Walmart stores will host an hour-long senior shopping event every Tuesday for customers aged 60 and older. This will start one hour before the store opens. Our Pharmacies and Vision Centers will also be open during this time.”

Anthony Dolce and Jo Ward contributed to this story.