A Y2K Trot, if Not a Run, on Suppliers

Along with the always-festive bubbly, it’s shotgun shells, freeze-dried noodles and portable toilets that are the big sellers as the millennial New Year’s Eve creeps closer.

The crush of parties, from twosomes at home to the wild beach bonfires, also is expected to max out Orange County’s pizza delivery capabilities and gobble up supermarket bagged-ice reserves.

The Home Depot in Fullerton sold out of five-gallon propane tanks on Wednesday, and portable generators, batteries and flashlights are being “snapped up like they’re going out of style,” the store’s manager said.

With Y2K looming just two days away, store owners throughout the county are reporting a mild-mannered run on both party and emergency supplies--but no panic or hysteria.

The county’s utilities, police agencies and local governments insist they are well-prepared for the first midnight of the new century, and don’t expect to see computer glitches or riotous, out-of-control revelers wreak havoc in their communities.

“We’ve tried to plan for absolutely everything,” said Glorria Morrison, Huntington Beach’s emergency services coordinator, echoing the sentiments of others.

Responding to a Times survey this week, officials in every Orange County city said they have taken action to ensure that their computer systems--which run everything from 911 calls to sewer systems--are protected and fully Y2K compliant.

Still, most cities and agencies are bracing for unexpected silicon-induced surprises.

* Police and fire agencies from Seal Beach to San Clemente will be fully staffed, many with extra hands, and ready to respond to anything from a surge in drunk drivers to Y2K computer mayhem. Every California Highway Patrol officer in Orange County will be on duty on New Year’s Eve.

* Stanton has stockpiled 100 portable stop signs and traffic barricades just in case traffic signals fail.

* Fullerton plans to fill city reservoirs to the brim Friday, and has set up emergency pumps and generators to make sure that every Fullerton resident has running water.

Despite the deluge of news coverage about possible fallout from Y2K, from terrorist threats to VCRs going haywire, sporting goods and home improvement stores say the demand for emergency gear has been steady but not overwhelming.

“There’s been nothing crazy,” said Candis Minor, a specialty coordinator for REI, a camping and outdoors store in Santa Ana. “But we’re cleaned out of stoves and propane.”

Solar-powered and hand-crank radios have also been popular, along with the store’s stock of freeze-dried food and water filters, Minor said.

“A lot of the people said it’s for their earthquake kit because they didn’t want to admit it’s for Y2K,” Minor said.

The Home Depot in Fullerton has gas-powered generators lined up near the front door and, even at $700 to $1,700 a pop, they’re selling fast, said store manager Jim Gorman.

Dave O’Brien, manager of the Army Navy Story in Orange, said customers have been buying oodles of freeze-dried noodles, as well as plastic water drums and gas-powered lanterns.

But people haven’t been panicked, he said: “It’s not like people are ripping the paneling off our walls for firewood.”

O’Brien said the biggest surprises this week were the number of portable camping toilets and the amount of ammunition the store sold.

“We had a lot of shotgun shells and a lot of slugs for [.38-caliber weapons] going out yesterday,” O’Brien said Wednesday. “That’s not something you shoot in the air for midnight. I suspect most of it was for home protection.”

Chris Chang, manager of Arrowhead Outdoor Sports in Westminster, said he’s sold out his entire stock of military-style assault weapons. Chang said that may have more to do with the statewide ban which goes into effect Saturday than with a millennium rush.

However, ammunition has been the biggest seller this week, he said.

“People are stocking ammo like crazy,” Chang said. “Mostly ammo for military-style guns. And of course .45 [caliber] and shotgun shells, they’re selling like crazy.”

As they have in years past, police officials are warning gun owners not to discharge their firearms to celebrate the New Year--a problem that has led to tragedy in the past.

The dangers that accompany New Year’s Eve prompted Pizza Hut restaurants in the county to announce they will close their doors at 8 p.m. on Friday, so pizza lovers should phone their orders in early.

“It’s not a staffing problem,” said Oliver Sanchez, a Pizza Hut manager in Garden Grove. “It’s a decision by the area manager. They just want to keep it on the safe side for the employees. You don’t know what’s going to happen.”

An employee for Domino’s Pizza in Placentia said the store is expecting New Year’s Eve to be the biggest night of the year--600 to 700 orders--since many people plan to celebrate at home.

And finally, the fears and cheers that will bring in the new year have even been a boon for local portable toilet rental companies.

Jim Wedgeworth, co-owner of Newport Sanitation Co. in Costa Mesa, said he’s rented the emergency commodes to the Huntington Beach Police Department, Costa Mesa, Seal Beach and a few of the county’s high-tech companies.

One homeowner in Santa Ana--fearing a possible Y2K snafu--even nabbed one. It’s in his yard, Wedgeworth said.

The company has 50 more portable toilets cleaned up and ready to roll, just in case, he said.

*

Times correspondents Eron Ben-Yehuda, Deepa Bharath, Andre Briscoe, Young Chang, Ana Cholo-Tipton, Marissa Espino, Angelique Flores, Andrew Glazer, Danette Goulet, Rebecca Harris, Alex Katz, Sean Kirwan, Thuy-Doan Le, Jasmine Lee, Alex Murashko, Kristiane M. Ridgway, Eric C Sanitate, and Judy Silber contributed to this report.