A surge in panic buying empties Naas supermarket shelves

At the Tesco extra store in Monread, Naas, at lunch time today it was like Christmas Eve. 

There were queues for parking and parking attendants directing people into spaces as they became available.

The store is the largest supermarket in County Kildare and one of the biggest in Ireland

The shopping trolley bays were empty and the checkout queues snaked up the alcohol aisle past the bakery at the back of the store and all the way around to the opticians.

Staff, many of whom had a 5am start, were struggling to keep up with demand as all the dot com online shopping slots (the supermarket's pre-order and delivery service) had been full days beforehand.

Aisles with non perishable foods, like tins of beans and vegetables, and toilet rolls, were being cleaned out by shoppers anxious to stock up.