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SANDY — Utah business owners said another round of shortages was expected because of the continued effects of the pandemic which means pool supplies, hot dogs, and even fireworks could be hard to come by in the coming weeks.
Some pool supply companies told KSL that chlorine, pumps, and other needs are already in short supply.
A number of Utah fireworks vendors expressed their concern over whether they'll have what they need in time for the Fourth of July.
It was a huge holiday in 2020. You probably remember the sky lighting up everywhere in Utah.
Vendor Matt Shadle said, "Last year was a record year for fireworks, in terms of how many of them went out in retail."
He runs a Black Cat fireworks stand in Sandy. He said those big sales coupled with a backlog in manufacturing because of the pandemic started to cause some problems.
"I was on pins and needles, up until here a month ago," he said.
He said it looks like he will have what he needs in time for the Fourth but not everyone is so lucky.
"I have no idea when it's going to get here," said Douglas Gordon, who owns Utah Grand Finale Fireworks.
He said his shipping container, which will also serve as a storefront, was stuck in the Wuhan area.
"The factories are about 1,200 miles from Shanghai," he explained. Once the container leaves China, it will be stuck at another delay in California.
"They're backed up in L.A. on unloading, so I don't know exactly how soon it's going to get here. Maybe it will get here before the Fourth of July, maybe for the 24th of July. I don't know," Gordon added.
It has caused a lot of uncertainty for a business that depends on our July holidays.
"I'm down in inventory this year, so I have a very small amount of selection. So I really need my fireworks this year to be able to pay my loan back," he said.
Some vendors said they will be OK so not all of them are in the same boat.
Shadle added consumers may discover a much smaller supply which will mean higher demand and higher prices.
