This is how Americans are responding to coronavirus-induced toilet paper shortages
Retailers, police officers and bakeries roll out toilet paper plans.
From viral memes to misdemeanors, the run on toilet paper in the U.S. amid the coronavirus outbreak has been well documented, with some people helping those who need paper products get fresh rolls.
While retailers have reminded consumers that supply chains remain in place and retailers are hustling to restock shelves, that hasn't stopped folks from coming up with unique ways to distribute the high-demand paper product.
From limits on how much toilet paper people have been allowed to buy to clever ways community leaders are distributing it, people around the country are finding fun ways to roll with it.
Retailers restrict overbuying
To alleviate some of the panic, some retailers like Target have established limits on how much toilet paper each customer can buy at a time.
Online calculator shows how long your roll will actually last
Need to know how long a roll will really last? There's an online calculator for that.
The new e-tool calculates how much TP you have on hand based on the number of rolls you have and your estimated number of trips to the bathroom.
Check it out here.
Most standard two-ply rolls, according to their packaging, should last about a week.
Police hand out TP instead of tickets
One police department in South Carolina came up with a clever alternative to help the local community by swapping out tickets with TP.
"We understand there's a lot of anxiety and stress out here, so in lieu of giving tickets we're going to give toilet paper to just relieve some stress and anxiety, and remind the community that we're here to help," the officer said in the video.
Drivers were visibly surprised by the act of kindness, and one mother told the officers her daughter had just picked up their family's last roll.
Man caught with stolen truck and hundreds of rolls
The Guilford County Sheriff's Office shared a photo on Facebook of a stolen 18-wheeler discovered carrying 18,000 pounds of toilet paper.
Sheriff Danny Rogers said in the post that deputies followed the vehicle, which was reported as stolen, to a warehouse facility a short distance off the interstate, where they encountered the driver and conducted the search.
The investigation is ongoing, but no arrests have been made, police said in the statement.
Social media embraces humorous side of toilet paper
Oscar winning "Hair Love" director Matthew Cherry shared a photo of his family's toilet that had two rolls on top of the lid with an empty cardboard roll to make the toilet look like a face, smoking a cigar.
The trend of personified toilets seemingly started on Instagram, and people have shared snaps of the clever bathroom trick on an array of social media platforms.
Bakery whips up tasty TP-inspired cakes
Traub’s Bakery in Philadelphia decided to roll with the toilet paper frenzy and began to bake cakes in the shape of the white spools.
"It's a tasty way to poke fun at all the frenzy around toilet paper," Lauren Lanciano, one of the bakers, told ABC News.
The cakes come in two sizes: a 7-inch large and a 3-inch mini.
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