EARTHQUAKE: THE LONG ROAD BACK : Gearing Up and Shutting Down : Building Supply Store Scrambles to Keep Vital Items in Stock

There are a few things victims urgently need in the aftermath of a big earthquake. Food. Water. Warmth. And, as HomeBase executives discovered this week, water line connectors.

Never seen one? It’s the copper tubing that connects your water heater to its water source. On a normal day, the HomeBase building supply store in North Hollywood might sell a dozen of the 18-inch pipes. But in the aftermath of Monday’s earthquake that shook many homes from their foundations--and piping from their water heaters--the store has sold more than 8,000. In fact, it has sold out its entire stock of the $6.37 gadgets every day since the 6.6-magnitude temblor.

The store--which was severely damaged itself by the quake--has put out the retail equivalent of an SOS for these items--along with other heavily demanded consumer supplies, including ceiling tiles, drywall and flashlight batteries.

The store nags its corporate headquarters office in Irvine. It begs and borrows items from other HomeBase stores statewide. It places dozens of urgent calls to vendors as far away as Arizona. And when all else fails, it has even cajoled vendor salespeople to load up their own cars and lug the supplies to the stores themselves.

After an earthquake, there simply is no standard operating procedure.

“In the retail business--especially after an earthquake--you have to develop a sixth sense,” said Manny Urbina, who is logging 16-hour days this week. “We know most people aren’t out planting flowers in their gardens right now. I told everyone in the store to think only of this: What do people urgently need for cleanup and repair?”

Earthquake damage at the HomeBase store in North Hollywood--which exceeded $500,000--forced it to close for a day of harried cleanup Monday. Windows were shattered, supplies had tumbled from the shelves and there was no power. But dozens of store employees still arrived and cleaned up in the store aisles that were dimly lit with the help of whirring generators.

By Tuesday morning, the store was back in limited operation. Before it opened, Urbina met with about 60 of the store’s 170 employees to discuss how to keep anxious consumers happy.

“Put yourself in their place,” Urbina told store employees. “Whatever you do, don’t get into arguments. Give them whatever they want.”

While customers weren’t allowed to step into the store on Tuesday, store employees fetched repair items for anxious patrons who lined up 100 deep at the front door.

The store sold 600 sheets of plywood within three hours of opening Tuesday. It sold 200 cases of ceiling tile that day--more than 20 times the amount it normally sells. While the store might typically sell 100 water heaters in a week, it’s now selling more than 100 a day.

Few items, however, flew out the door faster than batteries. The first two days after the quake, the store sold 16,000 packs of flashlight batteries. Normally, it might sell 50 a day.

The store has temporarily junked the computerized way it usually tracks inventory because its computers can’t handle too much deviation from the usual routine. “The computer doesn’t know there was an earthquake,” said Donna Hoyt, receiving manager.

The store’s receiving department, which usually closes by 3 p.m., has extended its hours to 8:30 p.m. “We’re taking items off the back of the truck directly to the sales floor,” said Evelio Fonticiella, a sales manager.

Many employees who previously lacked authorization were given special permission to place orders to replenish stock.

Since the earthquake, store phone operators--who typically handle 120 calls an hour--are handling closer to 400. “One lady called and said she just wanted to know if we were still alive,” Hilda Juarez said. “I told her we were.”

Despite the long lines, frayed nerves and occasional aftershocks, the cashiers--who deal directly with more customers than do any other employees--must somehow keep smiling.

Take Martha Lopez, who has been a cashier at HomeBase for five years. She was at the register when the store reopened Tuesday, even though severe earthquake damage has forced Lopez and her family to move out of their Reseda apartment.

“It amazes me how many customers--busy as they are--stop to ask me, ‘How are you doing?’ ”

Ignoring the fact that the earthquake destroyed her apartment, she tells them she’s doing just fine. And then she smiles.