They planned a three-day giveaway. But Philadelphians claimed 300,000 free avocados in less than 3 hours.

What happens when you tell Philadelphia you need to get rid of thousands of avocados over the course of three days — free of charge, no limits on what you can grab — otherwise, they’ll go to waste?

Thousands of Philadelphians answer the call, claiming roughly 300,000 avocados before 3 p.m.

The day drew widespread attention with news choppers overhead and a National Public Radio reporter at the scene for the event slated to run from noon to 6 p.m., with repeats Thursday and Friday.

“We thought this much food was going to last us three days, it went in two hours,” said Sarah DiPasquale, distribution director for the nonprofit Sharing Excess, which distributes this type of extra food all the time. “I don’t really have words.”

Don’t worry, added DiPasquale, what’s been called “Avogeddon” at FDR Park will return with two more truckloads of avocados tomorrow and an undecided number of avocado trucks Friday — there are more avocado trucks in the state than Sharing Excess initially claimed. Local food banks are also getting some of the surplus.

» READ MORE: Free avocados! Thousands of them! Get them in FDR Park.

As a live band played, people dressed as avocados guided foot and car traffic that wrapped around the stretch of the park near 20th Street and Pattison Avenue on Wednesday. The car line looked like something out of a heist movie, except the protagonists were driving SUVs and sliding the passenger doors open to reveal a grandma or auntie ready to grab a box of avocados before signaling it was time to keep moving.

Their prize? Excess avocados from Central and South America in a year with volatile prices and supply of the beloved fruit.

“One was $3 a month ago,” swore South Philly resident Jenny Ramos.

People like Jules Siler exited the park by foot equally as giddy, checking the ripeness of their bumpy green hauls with grins that told newcomers: Can you believe these were free?

“I needed this workout,” joked Siler, as he mentally divided how many avocados friends and neighbors back in West Philly would get.

Siler’s cousin, Siler Kent, had bigger ambitions. His on-again off-again, more than friend, but not quite lover — what young people call a “situationship” — loves making guacamole, he said. Maybe Avogeddon would rekindle something. If not, Kent would simply snack on the avocados.

Germantown resident Christina Khaw saw her haul as an opportunity to do good and expand her avocado horizons. She rushed out of the park with a box she mainly planned to distribute to neighbors, but she figured she’d save six avocados for herself and her husband and daughter. With those, she’d make a familiar guacamole crema and she’s considering an avocado shake.

“There’s also a vegan brownie recipe that uses avocados,” she said. “Who knows, I’m just talking out of my butt right now.”

Kairo Thompson, 1, trotted beside his mother and grandmother, quick to snatch a fruit when the women gave their shoulders breaks and put their two boxes down.

“We’re Mexican,” said Santamaria, as her son took his chance. “This will last us two weeks once they’re ripe.”

Thompson’s grandmother Jenny Ramos estimated they must have grabbed $70 worth of avocados.

“No! They’re not ready yet,” Ramos told her grandson in Spanish before catching him. As she rattled off what she could make for the family of five — guacamole, salsa, ceviche, and more.

Of course, in Avogeddon, like in life, there are winners and losers.

Those who got there past 3 p.m. were met with heartbreak and an overcast sky. There were some moldy avocados left, but volunteers discouraged grabbing those.

“I may come back tomorrow,” said South Philly resident Crystal Rose. She found some avocados that were edible — they had some moldy stems but were good on the inside— but she’s hoping to grab more for her breakfast.