BLANTON - Ted Vaughan takes his responsibilities seriously.
He is a storekeeper, but more important, he's a link to the necessities of life for residents in the rural Blanton community between Dade City and Brooksville. Vaughan's Country Store is a remote outpost for provisions - gasoline, food, water, ice - far from other shops.
So when Frances rolled across the hills of northeast Pasco, Vaughan stayed at his post instead of closing up shop.
And with Hurricane Ivan bearing down, Vaughan, 50, said his customers can expect a repeat performance.
"As locals, they depend on us," Vaughan said Friday. "They know I'm going to be here, open, no matter what."
Last week at the peak of the storm, Vaughan said he used a generator when his electricity failed to keep the cash register, refrigerator cases and the all-important gas pumps working.
"We had a steady stream in here all day," he said.
It was windy and busy, but Vaughan said he wasn't afraid for his safety during Frances.
The biggest sellers, he said, were gas, ice and coffee.
Customer Jason Hooks, who has lived in Blanton for 26 years, was grateful.
"I was in here all day," Hooks said of Frances' arrival. "We needed ice when the power went out, and coffee when we couldn't make our own."
Hooks said he might not ride out Ivan. He has property in North Carolina that might look a lot more comfortable, he said.
Ringing up sales at the register Friday, cashier Amy Gulvin said she wasn't sure of her plans either. Evacuation was a possibility.
But Vaughan said he'll be at the helm in his concrete block store. The windows are protected by metal bars, the store has been standing since the early 1960s, and Vaughan has been running it for 20 years.
His son, Ted Vaughan III, will join him if it gets bad. The younger Vaughan is a seven-year Army veteran who returned from Iraq three months ago, Vaughan said. "People need us out here," he said. "I just got a new shipment of gas. We've got ice. I've got the generator. The only way I'll close is if the roof goes. If the roof goes, that's it."
