'Cross our fingers:' With shelves bare, coastal residents hope to find supplies before Florence hits

At Kure Beach, the surf was getting rough as local stores were taking a hit from the storm as well. As of Sunday night, some people were having a tough time finding bottled water in Carolina Beach.

Hurricane Florence is getting stronger, will still make landfall as major hurricane

Wrightsville Beach goers were taking the threat of the storm in stride Sunday and surfers were taking full advantage of the waves. Further our on the coast, however, people like Shawn Naseri were busy preparing for Florence.

“I’m just getting ready for the hurricane. I’ve got a couple of boats that I need to move and cars that I’m fueling up and gas for the generators,” he said.

Even further up the coast, preparations have come up short at the Carolina Beach grocery stores.

“They’re completely out of water,” another resident said. “We were going to try to go up to the beach, but I guarantee they’re out of water too.”

Hurricane survival kit: How to keep your family safe when a hurricane hits

With Hurricane Florence expected to make landfall as a major hurricane by Thursday, most people said they still have time to find the necessities.

“Let’s cross our fingers,” the resident said.

Bottled water going fast as hurricane nears NC

WRAL News has learned that some stores are expected to get shipments on Monday to restock supplies ahead of the storm.

With North Carolina under a State of Emergency, price gauging laws are in effect, preventing retailers from raising prices on items like bottled water or gas.

Anybody who believes a store is price gauging should contact the Attorney General’s Office.