Hamilton’s bars became a refuge for storm-hit residents on Sunday, with hundreds of powerless people pouring through the doors for food and to watch TV.

Tropical Storm Fay caused devastation across the Island and left nearly 28,000 homes without electricity — but the wild weather was a “blessing in disguise” for publicans who reported a massive boost to their businesses.

The Island’s gas stations were also busy with people queuing for fuel and storm supplies such as water and batteries.

Robin Hood Pub and Restaurant on Richmond Road was so busy it ran out of food just before 10pm on Sunday.

“It was absolutely slammed,” said one Robin Hood server, who asked not be named. “We had to call in extra staff — we weren’t expecting the rush at all.

“We ran out of food late in the evening and had no choice but to close the kitchen at about 9.45/10pm. We were serving food all day.

“I’ve no way of knowing how many people were in, it was insane — but we’re not complaining.”

Rick Olson, owner of Bermuda Bistro at the Beach on Front Street, described Sunday’s trade as “crazy”.

“Everyone knows we’re open every day of the year so it was extremely busy,” he said. “About 28,000 were out of power and we probably had 1,000 of them.

“We served until midnight — it was good for us, it’s been a crazy couple of days.

“Service was slower because we weren’t 100 percent prepared but our staff worked 18-hour days yesterday — as long as we don’t lose power then we open.”

Flanagan’s Irish Pub owner and manager Chris Garland said the Front Street venue was as busy as on St Patrick’s Day.

“The storm was a blessing in disguise for business,” he added. “It was a good day and we were happy to help with people’s needs.

“We opened about 10am and didn’t stop serving food until 11pm — it was much busier than a usual Sunday.

“We’re prepared for much of the same the next couple of days, there are still people without power who can’t cook.”

Hundreds also packed through the doors of The Docksider Pub and Restaurant on Front Street.

Owner Reed Young described business as “absolutely manic” and “busier than we’ve been in a while”.

“It was much busier than a normal Sunday,” he said. “It was close to a record day — more than 300 people were served food.

“By the time I went to pick up staff we opened at about 11.45am and it stayed pretty steady right through until 9/10pm.

“It was packed but a good day overall.”

Mr Young said The Docksider would open this weekend should Hurricane Gonzalo hit the Island as forecast.

“We’ll be open — that’s the fortunate thing about Hamilton, power is underground. As long as we have power, we’ll be open and a refuge in the storm.”

Philip Barnett, president of Island Restaurant Group, said Hamilton’s Hog Penny and Pickled Onion enjoyed bumper days, as did the Frog and Onion Pub in Dockyard.

“We were very busy and I’m so thankful for my staff who braved the weather and power outages, came into work and served as many people as they could,” he said.

“We ran out of quite a lot of menu items at Hog Penny — we make everything from scratch so couldn’t just open a frozen packet.”

Mr Barnett said the group was preparing for another busy weekend if there was another storm, as predicted.

“We’re going to do the best we can and we’ll try to get as organised as possible,” he said. The Island’s gas stations that were able to open also reported brisk trade.

Jermaine Simons, sales manager for RUBiS Energy Bermuda, said some stations were shut on Sunday because they had no power.

Self-service was available at St John’s Road in Pembroke, while the station at South Road, Warwick, was open all day.

Terceira’s on North Shore, Flatts and St George’s were also able to open but Boaz Island in Somerset had to close.

“There was quite a bit of traffic at times, lines were 10-12 vehicles deep,” Mr Simons said. “Whether this was people unprepared or panicking, it’s difficult to say.

“There was about a five percent increase in business. I haven’t had complete information yet but there were typical storm sales — batteries, water, some convenience, feel-good things like snacks. These were the main items people were trying to get hold of.” Mr Simons urged customers to visit the RUBiS website for hurricane safety advice ahead of this weekend’s storm.

“We suggest that people fill their tanks beforehand and not to panic, the stations will be adequately stocked,” he said.

“We have a disaster plan for stations and they will stay operating if they can — each station will do an assessment as to safety. At the earliest possible opportunity they will reopen.”

Hamilton’s MarketPlace and SuperMart grocery stores were also open on Sunday — although the latter said there was no upturn in customers.

“Sunday wasn’t as busy, people were busy fixing their yards I would’ve thought,” said SuperMart president Tredick Gorham. “We have plenty of supplies for next week — water, batteries, food — but the storm is a ways away yet.”

No one from MarketPlace was available for comment.

For hurricane safety advice, visit RUBiS Energy Bermuda’s website at www.rubis-bermuda.com/safety-tips