West side Farmington Walmart closes for cleaning as employee coronavirus cases rise - Farmington Daily Times

Joshua Kellogg   | Farmington Daily Times

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FARMINGTON — The west side Walmart in Farmington is shutting down for nearly two days as part of a “company-initiated” program to have a cleaning crew sanitize the business.

It comes as the state environment department placed the big box retailer on its daily Rapid Response COVID-19 watchlist for the last five days with four positive cases listed for employees.

The Walmart Supercenter location at 1400 W. Main St. in Farmington closed at 2 p.m. on Nov. 6 and is set to reopen at 7 a.m. on Nov. 8.

Cleaning crews are expected to thoroughly sanitize and clean the building while it is closed to the public, according to a Walmart statement.

A statement from Walmart corporate said it is working with health officials to keep employees and customers safe and healthy.

“Everything we’re doing is for the well-being of our associates and customers, and in consideration of guidance by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and health experts. When the store reopens (Sunday), we will continue conducting associate health screens and temperature checks, and all associates will be provided with facemasks and gloves,” Walmart said in a statement.

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The New Mexico Environment Department had placed the west side Walmart on its Rapid Response COVID-19 watchlist from Nov. 1 to Nov. 5.

It had two positive cases of COVID-19 among employees on Nov. 1, with the number of cases rising to four on Nov. 5.

The list includes businesses statewide which had two or more rapid responses in the last 14 days.

The west side Walmart was the only Farmington business on the list for Nov. 5.

The state environment department will refer any establishment with four or more rapid responses within a two-week period to the New Mexico Department of Health, which would evaluate and make a decision regarding closure.

The statement from Walmart did not discuss or address the four positive COVID-19 case for employees listed by the State of New Mexico.

Customers with curbside pickup orders for Nov. 7 will still have their orders processed.

Any early Black Friday sales prices will be honored on Nov. 8 when the store reopens.

Joshua Kellogg covers breaking news for The Daily Times. He can be reached at 505-564-4627 or via email at jkellogg@daily-times.com.

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