AN AYR carer has hit out at panic buyers who are emptying shelves due to coronavirus fears – warning they are leaving the most vulnerable people at risk.

The worker, who does not wish to be named, looks after vulnerable residents in the community and has been shocked at the lack of essentials available in shops.

Last week, the carer told how she could not find anti-bacterial spray used to clean people’s houses anywhere, after checking several shops across the town.

She is worried that the lack of supplies will have ‘put lives at risk’ as she tries to care for people with severe mental health, disabilities and underlying health conditions.

The worker told the Advertiser: “It has been really tough to do my job.

“I usually go and buy things like hand sanitiser and toilet rolls, essential items, but there is none.

“I went to buy Detoll spray to help clean someone’s house to make it safe, but you can’t buy it anywhere.

“Poundland, Savers, all the shelves are clear, there is no hand soaps, there’s nothing.”

She said: “People just aren’t thinking about this.

“People don’t realise there are vulnerable people out there.

“The people I am looking after are the most at-risk group, they have underlying health conditions already, so we need to be careful, its that one step further.

“No one considers the people who need it the most when they go and buy two hand gels.”

The worker is concerned that carers across the country face a challenging and demanding time as they have to protect people in their homes from the virus.

She added: “They can’t go about their daily life as normal and explaining this to them is really difficult.

“They maybe don’t understand that they are at risk, there’s no sense of safety.

“The danger is certainly there.”