A 19-year-old Walmart Inc. (NYSE: WMT) employee was found dead in the store's walk-in oven located in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.
What Happened: The young woman was discovered in the bakery department's oven at the Walmart located at 6990 Mumford Rd. Police were notified at 9:30 p.m. on Saturday. The investigation into the cause and manner of death is ongoing, with Halifax Regional Police working alongside Occupational Health and Safety and the Nova Scotia Medical Examiner Service. It is still uncertain if the death involved any criminal activity, according to NBC News report on Wednesday.
The Maritime Sikh Society shared that the victim and her mother had moved to Canada from India two to three years ago. Balbir Singh, a representative of the society, conveyed the community's sorrow and their hope for clarity from the investigation.
Walmart has temporarily shut down the store and is providing support to its employees, including counseling services. The Nova Scotia Department of Labour, Skills and Immigration has issued a stop-work order for the bakery and certain equipment.
Walmart has yet to respond to Benzinga's queries about the incident.
Why It Matters: This incident comes at a time when Walmart is experiencing a boost in its grocery sector due to a slight increase in grocery inflation and hurricane preparedness behaviors. According to JPMorgan analyst Christopher Horvers, grocery inflation rose to 2% in the third quarter, up from 1.5% in the previous quarter.
This increase has been beneficial for grocery-heavy retailers like Walmart, as consumers stock up in response to recent hurricanes.