Don Lankford unlocked the doors 20 minutes early Saturday to accommodate the frantic crowds rushing into his Opelika store.

But these shoppers, worried about the coronavirus pandemic, weren’t seeking bottled water, medicine, hand sanitizer and toilet paper. They were in a search for guns, ammunition, body armorer and other self-protection essentials.

“Literally, they are nervous,” said Lankford, owner of Southern Survival for the past six years. “(Customers) are saying they are stocking up. I tried to order as much as I could last week, and we have a good supply right now. But it’s looking like (it could be similar to) Walmart and toilet paper.”

Retail gun stores and shooting ranges are reporting a surge of interest in mostly ammunition as uncertainty continues to loom over the virus spreading and the potential that some people may have to quarantine themselves.

Lankford said he’s not seen a surge of sales like this since the Pulse night club shooting in Orlando in 2016, when gunmakers saw an increase in activity as speculation rose over the potential of tougher gun control measures following a mass shooting that killed 49 people and injured 53.

“After the Pulse Night club shooting, there was a huge rush to buy but this exceeds that one,” said Lankford. “People are panicking.”

At Alabama Guns and Outdoors in Pelham, owner Russell England said the hot sellers are ammunition, small handguns and “AR-15 type” of guns.

“Folks are absolutely storing up some ammo,” said England. “They are unsure of what the next month might hold.”

He added, “Everyone who comes into a gun store has a conversation. They are discussing politics and what’s going on in the community and everyone is worried and concerned.”

A recent analysis by the online ammunition retailer, Ammo.com, shows sales ratcheting up since Feb. 23, with some brands experiencing a considerable surge since early February.

The uptick comes after the industry had been experiencing as slump. The slump came from a push back AR-style guns that had been used in mass killings leading some major manufacturers, like Remington, to go into bankruptcy.

“We know certain things impact ammo sales, mostly political events or economic instability when people feel their rights may end up infringed, but this is our first experience with a virus leading to such a boost in sales,” said Alex Horsman, spokesman at Ammo.com, said in a statement. “But it makes sense. A lot of our customers like to be prepared. And for many of them, it’s not just facemasks and TheraFlu. It’s knowing that no matter what happens, they can keep themselves and families safe.”

Shooting ranges, while not seeing a surge of visitors, are having to plan for the boost in ammunition demand and a tightening of supply by distributors.

“The nationwide run on ammunition is real … very, very real,” said Frank Manuel, owner of Montgomery Indoor Shooting Complex.

Manuel said he orders ammunition every Monday morning in order to stock his inventory. He said he purchased enough of a supply to last for six months.

“Had I not done that, I would be in very big trouble in a few days because there won’t be much available,” said Manuel. “I usually keep a week’s worth of supply.”

At Styx River Shooting Center, which is a shooting range and gun shop, ammunition is orders in bulk months in advance. But Cindy Ross, owner of the Robertsdale-based business, has noticed that gun owners are worried that the guns and ammunition sold in stores are often imported from China, which was Ground Zero for COVID-19.

“They are scared they are not going to get (the imported products),” said Ross.

Not everyone is experiencing a surge. At K&K Outdoors in Brewton, a store employee said that there was no unusual uptick with their business. And at T&T Guns and Ammo 2 in Foley, there has only been a “slight increase,” according to store manager Drew Hemby.

“It’s nothing super impeding that everyone is rushing in to buy every bullet they can find,” said Hemby. “But we’ve seen an increase of people buying build ammo in excess of 100 rounds to 1,000, if they can find it.”

Some retailers are also reporting a bump in ammunition pricing from distributors. But retailers contacted by AL.com on Saturday said they don’t plan on boosting their sales prices during the coronavirus pandemic.

“We’re not charging more than we normally do,” said Hemby.

Lankford, at Southern Survival, said he’s not seen distributors increasing prices on him or other retailers. He warns, “that could happen,” but that as of right now, nothing is changing.

“We have not changed a single price on ours,” he said.

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