Forecast from the National Weather Service.

Snow may pack Lawrence parking lots in the very near future, but cars packed the lots Tuesday evening.

Droves of people stocked up on necessities — food, gasoline, ice melt — in preparation for a snowstorm expected to dump 7 to 10 inches of snow on Lawrence late Wednesday night.

“I refuse to drive in snow,” Kansas University freshman Mariah Perez, of Topeka, said as she was pushing a cart full of chips, bread and cheese in Dillons, 1015 W. 23rd St.

Perez said she hates to even venture outside in snow, so she didn’t want to run out of snacks in the residence hall she lives in.

Around 6 p.m. Tuesday, both Dillons and Checkers, 2300 Louisiana St., bustled with customers. The same was true at the Kwik Shop Convenience Store, 1846 Massachusetts St., where cars lined up two-deep next to the station’s four pumps.

Cashier Jesie Carter said such a rush was not out of the ordinary but the sense of urgency of many drivers was.

“They have been fighting with each other at the pumps,” she said, adding that numerous people had tried to cut in line at the pumps and had been “a bit more grumpy.”

Next door, Linda Cottin, owner of Cottin’s Hardware, 1832 Massachusetts St., was all smiles.

“I’m pretty excited,” Cottin said after “finally getting rid of” 60 bags of ice melt, left over from an especially mild winter last year.

Cottin said customers had been talking about the storm all day in the store and were also planning indoor projects in case the snow kept them from leaving the house.