‘I feel like...an elf,’ Amazon gives behind-the-scenes look at how your gifts arrive for holidays

KETTERING — Christmas is less than a week away, and shipping centers across the country are working to get packages where they need to be.

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News Center 7′s Kayla McDermott went inside the Amazon distribution center in Kettering to get a peek behind the scene before the holidays.

Amazon Field Communications Manager, Jessica Pawl, tells us this is Amazon’s peak season. “Right now, we are seeing all of the hard work that’s been put in all year long.”

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The distribution center in Kettering is the last stop packages take before ending up at customers’ doors. Pawl tells us, “this is what we call the last mile. It’s kind of our local North Pole... Packages are coming overnight every night in semi-trucks.”

Chris Howard, a distribution center worker, tells us he feels like an elf in Santa’s workshop. He tells us today Amazon is looking at sorting 75,000 at the Kettering distribution center.

“It’s an amazing feeling when you know you get to see these names on the packages and somebody’s gonna be smiling when they get that gift,” Howard said.

Amazon expects to ship out about 500,000 packages between now and Sunday.

Delivery drivers request that anyone expecting a package leave their sidewalk or front porch free of ice and snow for safety reasons.

Amazon distribution center worker shows how he does his job

Other parcel carriers will be delivering packages leading up to Christmas as well.

Package sent before or on the following dates they are expected to reach their destination before or by December 23rd:

USPS

December 19: Priority Mail Service
December 23: Priority Mail Express Service

UPS

December 19: Normal delivery
December 20: 3-Day Select
December 21: 2nd Day Air
December 22: Next-Day Air

FedEx

December 20: Express Saver
December 21: 2Day
December 22: Priority Overnight
December 23: SameDay

Military Shipping

If you need to send a gift to a loved one stationed at a military base, plan to ship much earlier. Shipping deadlines, as provided by USPS (the only carrier authorized to deliver to bases), vary by the base’s ZIP code.

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