Rock salt shortage is impacting people across the state

If you have tried to buy rock salt and were told it’s sold out, you are not alone.

Jessica Sherman said she is not a fan of the recent weather.

“It’s horrible. It’s very nice out there," Sherman said.

Liz Henderson echoes that same sentiment.

“Unpleasant is one way to put it. It’s not been my idea of a fun winter," Henderson said.

And the lack of rock salt only makes things worse.

Melissa Brett, the co-owner of Welden Hardware in Simsbury, told us it's unfortunate for everyone.

“I wish I could help everybody," Brett said. "I wish I had a whole tractor-trailer load.”

Brett said there are a variety of factors at play, including recent mild winters for Connecticut standards.

"People have been limited in how they ship them and store them because they don't want to keep ice melt during the summertime," Brett said.

Brett said other factors are also at play.

“The ice melt for the south was shipped down to the southeastern part of the United States," Brett said. "It was shipped down when they had the snow and the ice.”

While ice melt is hard to come by, Tom Roy, the director of public works in Simsbury, told us they are in good shape.

“We had a substantial supply of treated salt before the shortage really came into play,” Roy said.

He said they work with multiple suppliers.

“We actually purchased our salt through two different cooperatives," Roy said. "One through the State of Connecticut and the other through the Capital Region Council of Governments.”

Roy said people should avoid driving in icy weather. If you must, he said, do so slowly and cautiously.

"If you don't have to be out on the roads, it's a great chance to work from home,” Roy said. “Or put off your errands until the road work has been done by our road crews.”

Welden Hardware is set to receive more ice melt on Wednesday, but they expect to sell out quickly.