Supplies of milk, gas and even chili are starting to run low in Squamish, B.C. one of the communities along the Sea to Sky Highway, which have been cut off since Tuesday night by a massive rock slide.
"If they do not deliver today, we don't have gas tomorrow,'' said Irene Salimbot, an attendant at the Husky gas station in Squamish, which is located 20 kilometres north of the rock slide.
Some residents admit they are even stocking up on gas as they wait for blasting crews to clear the highway, a process that is expected to take at least another three days.
"I think I'll go home and get the van and put some in there,'' said a resident of nearby Furry Creek.
Already residents in the area are already having trouble finding milk at local grocery stores. The impact is also being felt at local restaurants. "We ran out of Chili today,'' said Mara Porlietis, a supervisor at the Wendy's Restaurant in Squamish.
It's not just food that is in short supply. With no traffic, there are far fewer customers
"We're down about half at least and we've had maybe three customers and we've been open an hour," said Porlietis.
Indeed it's so slow, staff have been sent home. But that's not the only problem, created by the rock slide. Ethan Miller should be at work instead of having coffee. But he can't get there.
"This is an expensive slide for me."
The Squamish resident normally commutes to Vancouver, but the slide has blocked the highway - and blocked his route to work.
"I work as a producer...can't be on the set,'' he said.
Many other locals are in the same situation. Lisa Lecheur's husband decided to make the long drive to Vancouver via Duffy lake road, a roundabout drive that takes several hours to complete, instead of the usual 45 minutes. That's because instead of driving directly south to Vancouver, they have to take an alternate route that initially involves heading north to Whistler.
"He's a little upset But what can you do?"
The slide is proving a big problem for the tourism business. At nearby Furry creek, staff are scrambling to get guests to two weddings this weekend. A total of about 200 people are expected to attend those weddings.
With the Sea to Sky blocked, the hosts are exploring other ways to get them there.
With a report by CTV British Columbia's Michele Brunoro.