Bloomington-Normal gun sellers are running low on ammunition. (Photo By Flickr user Marcin Wichary)

By Paul Morello

BLOOMINGTON - Ammunition has been hard to come by in Bloomington-Normal.

Both Twin Cities Wal Marts and the Dick's Sporting Goods in Normal have been out of 9 millimeter ammo for at least a week and there's not much hope of any shipments on the horizon.

An employee at Dick's said they've been out since Christmas and expects supplies to stay scarce. He said the lack of ammo is a national trend as talk of changes to gun laws and more shooting incidents occur.

Across town, the Wal Mart in Bloomington got a shipment of ammo in last week, but employees there said Thursday it was gone within just a few hours.

President Obama and Vice President Biden introduced a package of measures Wednesday aimed at reducing gun violence.

Most employees at local gun sellers said when there's national talk of gun laws and more shooting incidents, people tend to stock up on ammo.

Local police said the run on ammo has not affected their supplies, which are purchased in large quantities early in the year.

Paul Morello can be reached at paul@wjbc.com.