2 Workers at the Same Illinois Walmart Store Die of COVID-19

Two workers at the same Walmart location in Illinois were confirmed to have died of COVID-19, the chain said in a statement.

“We are heartbroken to learn of the passing of two associates at our Evergreen Park store, and we are mourning along with their families,” the Benton, Arkansas-based giant told news outlets on Saturday.

The store, which is located at 2500 W. 95th St., is still open. It will undergo a deep cleaning, said store officials.

“While neither associate had been at the store in more than a week, we took action to reinforce our cleaning and sanitizing measures, which include a thorough deep cleaning of a key area of the store,” Walmart’s statement added.

The two employees were both men, ages 51 and 48, with underlying health problems, according to the Cook County Medical Examiner’s office, reported the Chicago Tribune. The 48-year-old patient had diabetes, while the 51-year-old man was morbidly obese, according to the local agency.

“Additionally, we have taken steps across the country to protect our associates and customers, including additional cleaning measures, installing sneeze guards at registers, placing social distancing decals on the floors and limiting the number of customers in a store at a given time. We’ll continue to take steps, such as screening associates, conducting temperature checks, and providing masks and gloves for associates that want to use them,” said Walmart in the statement.

COVID-19 is the disease the CCP virus, commonly known as novel coronavirus, causes.