Some Businesses Boom In Storm Aftermath, Others Try To Regroup

BALTIMORE  (WJZ)-- The massive storm dealt a big blow to hundreds of Baltimore area businesses. However, for others whose power stayed on, it was money in the bank.

Ron Matz reports on the agony of loss and the thrill of just being lucky.

For three days, the line at the Dunkin' Donuts in Hampden has kept Aaron Payes on his toes. Many local convenience stores are closed, so coffee lovers are getting there fix there.

"It's been chaos, pretty hectic, constantly busy, no breaks. The power just luckily stayed on. The power is still off at our Falls Road store so all the business just came here," said Payes.

However, not everyone fared as well. The storm dealt Will Brown, co-owner of Banksy's Cafe, a big blow.

"Seven-thirty Saturday morning we were here. I looked through the window and could see that the drink machines weren't on, and that's when it really sinks your stomach and you realize that a lot of food is going to be gone," Brown said. "It's a hassle. We home make everything. All our sauces, all our dressings, it just needed to be re-done. We lost anywhere from $12,000 to 15,000 worth of food. Thankfully, we have good insurance to take care of it."

The massive power outage is also affecting many gas stations in the area.

"I was trying to get gas this morning. I'm almost on empty, but I can't because the Royal Farms Store is closed," said Kristen Tull, of Hampden.

Hopefully,  Brown's empty feeling will change soon.

""I'm waiting on a Saval truck to deliver more food. Hopefully, we'll be open tomorrow. We'll have no problems and be back to normal," Brown said.

The business boom in Hampden can be summed up in six words: The power just luckily stayed on.

The Hampden Dunkin' Donuts has added additional personnel to handle the big increase in storm-related business.