Concerns over the spread of the coronavirus isn’t only spiking sales at grocery stores across the state of Pennsylvania, but also at local gun shops.
“The biggest thing we are doing is we’re providing peace of mind,” said Patrick Connaghan, owner at 717 Armory in Dauphin County.
Connaghan says sales numbers at 717 Armory have already surpassed what he usually sees during Black Friday.
“We sold out of pretty much every pistol we had Monday night,” he said.
As the situation remains unpredictable, those who choose to purchase guns during the COVID-19 pandemic, are buying with ‘what-if’ questions in mind.
“They’re just scared that everything is just going to stop and they’re going to have to become self reliant people,” said Connaghan. “I can’t say they’re wrong, can’t say they’re right only time will tell,” he added.
With the rise in sales, background checks through the Pennsylvania State Police PICS system are now taking longer.
"We’re seeing an hour, two hours to a couple of days now,” said Connaghan.
On Tuesday, the high demands crashed the server for a total of seven hours.
“There was a server issue, the unit itself did over 4,000 checks,” said Trooper Brent Miller, spokesperson for Pennsylvania State Police.
Total PICS Checks per PSP:
Saturday March 14, 2020: 6,588
Sunday, March 15, 2020: 2,824
Monday, March 16, 2020: 7,706
Tuesday, March 17, 2020: 4,342
Today (March 18) up to 4:00 PM: 5,467
However, Miller says he is encouraging people to stay calm and rest assured.
“Pennsylvania State Police has the staff to handle the checks and the volume of checks that come in through our system,” he said.
“It is an essential tool to daily life and all that it is is a tool. It’s a tool that you would rather have and not need, than need and not have,” added Connagham.
Connagham says 717 Armory is using caution cleaning and disinfecting as they continue to take in customers.