LUZERNE COUNTY, Pa. — The flower tent in the Driscoll's parking lot on Boston Avenue in West Pittston has remained a constant no matter the weather in this part of Luzerne County.
But just because it can operate in the pandemic doesn't mean the virus is not on the minds of firefighters who host this as an annual fundraiser.
"In the planning of this year, we actually took the square footage of this and tried to figure out, you know, how many people we can let in here at one time," said firefighter Patrick Gilligan.
Gilligan says it won't really be an issue until around rush hour.
"Usually about six to eight people per hour, and then probably by midafternoon, four o'clock, five o'clock time frame, we should probably see a steady 20 to 30 people an hour."
Newswatch 16 noticed that some shoppers were in and out of the tent pretty quickly, not necessarily because of the pandemic, just because they knew what they wanted. Others took a little more time picking out their bouquets.
"Very good, we come here every year. The flowers are beautiful," Erin Brogna said.
"West Pittston Fire Department does a great job," said John Emmett. "They're a wonderful community service, a lot of great people, and I try to support as many of their community organizations as I can. My wife loves them. I've been doing this for probably about 10 years, coming down here for this, and it's just a great thing to do."
Firefighters say if you want some of these roses for your valentine, it's best to come sooner rather than later because they do tend to sell out, especially when February 13 falls on a Saturday.