Halifax Regional Police, Nova Scotia, are reportedly investigating the sudden death of a Walmart employee late Saturday night during a shift.
“We are heartbroken and our deepest thoughts are with our associate and his family. We extend our deepest condolences to those who were closest to them,” the company reportedly responded in a statement, according to Global News on Sunday.
Around 10 p.m., emergency services were called to a Halifax branch, located on Mumford Road, regarding a sudden death that occurred while the store was closing for the night.
When emergency services arrived on the scene, customers were allegedly rushed towards the exit of the store and forced to leave their shopping carts behind, reported a customer who was there in an anonymous testimony on Reddit.
The details of the incident were not shared by the authorities, while the province’s Ministry of Labor would have limited itself to declaring in a press release that it continued to “dialogue with our partners” from the Halifax police, but that he was “not able to share further information at the moment”, according to the English-speaking media.
For its part, the branch announced on its social networks the closure of the store “until further notice”, we can read. According to several comments, the incident could be linked to an oven in the branch’s bakery, but the information has not been confirmed by the authorities.
“We are also supporting our associates during this incredibly difficult time and have provided access to 24/7 virtual care and will provide on-site support, including grief counseling,” Walmart reportedly continued by press release, according to Global News.
In the comments, many Internet users denounced the working conditions at Walmart, insisting that training must be improved to avoid this type of incident.
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