WA shoppers begin panic buying products before COVID-19 lockdown begins

Shoppers have begun panic buying in the final hours before Perth plunges into a three-day lockdown.

Concerned shoppers have begun panic buying products before parts of Western Australia are plunged into a three-day coronavirus lockdown.

The Perth and Peel regions will go into lockdown from midnight tonight until midnight on Monday when the long weekend ends.

One of the four reasons people are allowed to leave their homes during the lockdown is to go shopping for essentials like groceries, medicine and necessary supplies.

But that has not stopped many people from panic buying.

In fact, the commotion began before Premier Mark McGowan made the announcement after rumours began to swirl on social media that a lockdown was looming.

There were chaotic scenes as shoppers swarmed supermarkets across Perth, with some running into stores wearing masks and gloves.

Among the items people were loading into their trolleys was toilet paper, rice and pasta.

Police officers were even called in to monitor the situation at some places.

Police called in to monitor the panic buying pic.twitter.com/8X3CtbEc6X

— Briana Fiore (@briana_fiore) April 23, 2021

Meanwhile, some people on social media expressed confusion about the panic buying.

“Really don’t understand people panic buying coz shopping gives you a legitimate reason to go out of home during lockdown, right?” one person wrote.

Another person wrote: “The funniest thing about panic buying is the people who are at the shops panic buying complaining about the other panic buyers panic buying.”

People have started panic buying for the three-day lockdown. Picture: NCA NewsWire/David Crosling. Generic

The lockdown comes after a 54-year-old Victorian man, who was in quarantine at the Mercure Hotel, unwittingly contracted the virus.

He had tested negative before he was released from quarantine, but on Friday he tested positive upon his return to Melbourne.

The man had been out in the community for five days and visited several places in Perth.

He became the third person to contract the virus on that floor of the hotel.

“I know this three-day short lockdown is very, very difficult but I hope we can keep it to three days only,” Mr McGowan said.

“Give our contact tracers and health teams the time they need to ensure community spread is limited.”

Originally published as WA shoppers begin panic buying products before COVID-19 lockdown begins