I guess I see it differently because of what we go through for hurricanes. To me, it’s just a practicality to have food, water, gas and cash on hand if there is a possibility of any disruptions. So I don’t see it as something to panic about. But people in other areas might, because it’s out of their norm.
To be honest, I don’t know whether areas hit hard by the virus have had those kind of disruptions because the focus has been on the health impact rather than the economic impact. But, for example, I get my power from an electric cooperative. I don’t know how many employees they have, but let’s say they have 100 since it’s not huge. If 25 of them get sick, even mild cases, that’s a quarter of the workforce out for approx two weeks. On top of that, now the coworkers have to be quarantined for two weeks because they were exposed. Who does that leave to provide power? Not saying that will happen, but it’s not impossible either. Unlike hurricane season, they may not be able to rely on the assistance of other power companies who will be dealing with their own virus issues. Other businesses could have the same problem. It is better to be prepared ahead of time, in a reasonable manner (not 12 years of TP worth) than to need something and no longer be able to get it.