Coronavirus Impact: Gun Sales Surge Amid Pandemic Panic

Gun stores all across the U.S. are reported a surge in sales, likely influenced by the mounting concern surrounding coronavirus. In places like California, Missouri, and New York, shoppers are stocking up on firearms and ammunition out of concern for the tumultuous times ahead.

While national sales will not be released by the FBI until April, some figures are available from individual states. Police in Virginia reported an 86% increase in background checks for gun purchases in January compared to the same period in 2019, with the trend staying mostly the same in February and March. In Colorado, roughly 14,000 background checks were conducted between March 14-21, double the amount from the same period last year.

Online store Ammo.com reported a 222% increase in sales as well as an accompanying 309% spike in revenue. In a public statement, the site called the increase "unprecedented."

“In five years I've owned this place, I've never had lines out the door,” Kimber Zerweck, owner of Delia’s Gunshop in Mayfair, Pennsylvania, told WPVI-TV, an ABC affiliate in Philadelphia. “It's a mixture of people who know what they wanna buy and other people who wanna buy because they're afraid of what's going on with the criminal element.”

In Missouri, online ammo sales have increased 182% since Feb. 23, according to a study from Ammo.com. In St. Louis, employees at Mid America Arms spoke to the Post-Dispatch newspaper about the spike in business, which has frequently led to lines out the door. After receiving a 300-box shipment of ammunition, a co-owner of the business estimated that it would be sold out within the day.