The United States Postal Service is dealing with an “unprecedented” amount of mail entering the holiday weekend amid reports of delayed packages.
On its website, the postal service reported that it was “experiencing unprecedented increases in volume and limited employee availability as a result of the impact of COVID-19.”
The high volume and personnel impact of the coronavirus pandemic has led to reports of delays among a number of people expecting Christmas packages.
Several people told The Associated Press that no holiday gifts have arrived and delivery times are longer than initial estimates.
A man from Grand Rapids, Michigan, said he ordered a collector’s model of a NASCAR race car for his father for Christmas on Nov. 30 for his father. Although the postal service informed him that the gift at 8, it still had not reached his father on Thursday evening.
“I understand the situation, but it’s still a bit frustrating,” Austin Race, 21, told the AP.
A woman in Ann Arbor, Michigan, experienced a similar situation, telling the store that Christmas decorations she ordered on Nov. 17 got stuck in Detroit, despite a Dec. 11 notice from the post saying it was already on destination had arrived in Columbus, Ohio.
“I was frustrated last week when I thought, ‘Come on, come here,’ but now I’m just laughing it off,” she said.
She added that the recipients of the ornaments can hang them from the tree next year and tell a story about how the pandemic sent them on a journey and delayed their arrival.