Friday, September 14, 2001

Star-spangled banner sales hit stores across nation
By Jacque Petersell
Staff Reporter

As Americans struggle to grasp the reality of Tuesday’s attacks, they reach for a tangible symbol of patriotic pride.

Many local hardware and craft supply stores sold out of American flags Wednesday and Thursday, store employees said.

Julie Flores, an employee at Ambrister’s Wedgwood Hardeware, said her store sold out Wednesday morning. She said the store normally carries 12 to 18 flags of different sizes.

Jeff Cyrier, one of the owners of Mr. C’s Hardeware, said the store wasn’t prepared for such a rush.

“They were gone first thing yesterday morning,” he said. “(We were unprepared because) we’re at the end of flag season. The only flag days left are Flag Day, Veterans’ Day and Columbus Day. We normally have many more flags at the beginning of summer.”

Cyrier said his store sold all 15 of the standard 3-feet by 5-feet flag kits with poles on Tuesday. Wednesday he sold out of the rest.

Cyrier said he ordered more flags from the warehouse. Since all stores are out of flags, he will only take one box of 24 flags when the shipment arrives today. He said he won’t get another shipment of flags until next week.

Delfino Chavez, assistant manager at T&C Ace Hardware, said several people request him to reserve flags for them until a new shipment comes in today. In the meantime, he said he has been sending customers to other places to find flags, but have been unsuccessful.

As Wednesday’s search and rescue effort continued amid the smoldering debris of the World Trade Center, workers said one symbol of survival helped them keep going: A flag had been planted in the rubble, “just to let them know that America's not dead,” said firefighter Ronald Coyne.

The roof of the Pentagon bore a huge banner of red, white and blue was draped Wednesday near the wall demolished by a hijacked plane in one of the terrorist attacks. The banner was hung for President Bush’s visit.

From the Midwest to Cajun Country, specialty shops, hardware stores, Kmarts and Wal-Marts were selling out of flags.

“I wish I had a truckload,” said Barby Fryer, manager of the Kmart in Schenectady, N.Y., which had sold out of flags by late Wednesday morning.

At the Colonial Flag and Specialty store in Sandy, Utah, customers clutching flags by the handful waited to pay for their purchases. Truck driver Bobby Whiteman planned to drape two flags from his rig’s side mirrors. Don Rosenkrantz, a fire battalion chief, bought flags to hang on his fire truck. Even Martin Christensen, who has a flag flying outside his home, was in line. He wanted a bigger one.

Internet users encouraged the displays in chain e-mails that were dispatched to dozens of users at a time.

“America needs, perhaps more than ever before, to unite in spirit — that will give us the strength to see us through this catastrophe,” one note read.

This article contains reports from The Associated Press.
Jacque Petersell
j.s.petersell@student.tcu.edu

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