BOSTON (WBZ NewsRadio) — Two Walmart stores in Massachusetts have been temporarily closed due to concerns about the spread of coronavirus.
According to a Walmart spokesperson, its Abington store is now shut for a second time in order to allow for extensive cleaning and for employees to be tested for COVID-19.
“While we followed our process at our Abington store, we have made the decision to close the store again to work with the health department to test our associates and others who work in the building,” said regional general manager Eddie Bostic.
Walmart said it has been monitoring its stores and bringing in "third-party experts to sanitize stores," while also working with local officials on additional proactive actions. That includes voluntarily closing stores on a temporary basis, like its Avon store.
“In Avon, we’ve seen the impact in the local community, which has also been felt in our store," said Bostic. "The nature of this virus makes it nearly impossible to track the source of anyone’s infection, so we are planning to work with health officials to review our measures, and determine additional steps, such as COVID-19 testing for associates and others who work at the store.”
The temporary closure of the Avon and the Abington stores come after a Walmart in Worcester was temporarily shut down due to 81 employees testing positive for the virus, and after 11 employees had the virus in Quincy, one of whom died. The Quincy Walmart plans to open on Friday after a deep cleaning.
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