Cobb County

Home Depot working overtime to make sure hurricane-hit areas set for supplies

COBB COUNTY, Ga. — The demand for supplies to rebuild hurricane-damaged neighborhoods in Texas isn't slowing Atlanta-based Home Depot's response to Florida.

Channel 2's Ross Cavitt got access to Home Depot's war room Thursday and found out how they're juggling both storms.

Officials for the home improvement supply company said it was all hands on deck as they prepared for yet another storm.

Officials for the home improvement supply company told Cavitt it was all hands on deck as they prepared for yet another storm.

[SPECIAL SECTION: Hurricane Irma heads toward Georgia]

“History tells us you don’t see this happening especially this close together. But we’re here. We’re working hard to make sure we’re there for the community,” Home Depot southern region president Hector Padilla told Cavitt.

The war room at Home Depot has spilled into multiple room as the home improvement giant now deals with stores in the Harvey recovery zone and stores in the line of fire of approaching Hurricane Irma.

RELATED STORIES:

Even as hundreds of thousands evacuate south Florida, Home Depot’s southern region president told Cavitt crews are still moving in.

“We’re moving a lot or products in to Irma. We want to be there for our customers. There’s a lot of demand, as you can imagine. We have hundreds of trucks on the way,” Padilla said.

This happens as Home Depot works to re-open and re-supply stores in Texas, and assess damage to stores in the Caribbean where Irma has already hit.

Download the FREE Severe Weather Team 2 Weather App

Weather App

This is not Home Depot’s first rodeo, saying the company is already planning for what happens when Irma passes by.

“We have a lot of history with what products are needed in the community so we’re getting ready for that, talking to our suppliers making sure the product is available,” Padilla told Cavitt.

With that history comes an almost mathematical prediction on when they’ll have to finally close stores and get their employees out.

“We also use a lot of local knowledge from our leaders in the field to make sure we understand the situation well enough to make the right decisions. We try to be the last ones to close and the first one to reopen. But again, our safety and the safety of our associates is No.1,” Padilla said.