CHARLESTON, W.Va — Soon after the Covid 19 pandemic began to take hold and fear of the unknown started to set in, there was panic in stores. Toilet paper was the first thing to disappear in frantic panic buying. Eventually, stores started to quickly run out of a lot of products, many of the essentials started to dwindle.
During those early days, truck drivers spent countless hours behind the wheel working to make sure those shelves weren’t bare for long.
“Eighty-three point eight percent of communities depend exclusively on trucks to get their goods,” said Traci Nelson, President of the West Virginia Trucking Association.
Nelson heaped praise upon the work of West Virginia truck drivers during what has been National Truck Driver Appreciation week.
“We have drivers who have driven millions and millions of miles with no accidents and the are great representatives of our industry. They get up and leave their families and put themselves in harm’s way on the highways. To most of them it’s a calling. They love what they do and hate when it’s time to retire,” she said.
Truckers were especially essential during those early days. Many suffered difficulties they typically didn’t experience. Truck stops were shuttered. Restaurants were closed and the long hauls were made even longer by a lack of essential trucking support services.
“They weren’t able to get food or things like that. Our drivers were literally working around the clock to get food to the shelves, but it was very difficult,” Nelson said.
Many communities began to realize the value of trucks when they noticed fewer and fewer of the products they typically saw in abundance at the local store. There were community efforts to feed truckers and show appreciation. Nelson loved the idea.
“We like to celebrate our truck drivers because if you buy it, they delivered it,” she said.