Wal-Mart worker dies after shoppers knock him down

[KJH278]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/wal_mart_...XyQmF_7mvXn414


NEW YORK – A Wal-Mart worker was killed Friday when "out-of-control" shoppers desperate for bargains broke down the doors at a 5 a.m. sale. Other workers were trampled as they tried to rescue the man, and customers shouted angrily and kept shopping when store officials said they were closing because of the death, police and witnesses said.

At least four other people, including a woman who was eight months pregnant, were taken to hospitals for observation or minor injuries, and the store in Valley Stream on Long Island closed for several hours before reopening.

Shoppers stepped over the man on the ground and streamed into the store. When told to leave, they complained that they had been in line since Thursday morning.

Nassau police said about 2,000 people were gathered outside the store doors at the mall about 20 miles east of Manhattan. The impatient crowd knocked the man, identified by police as Jdimytai Damour of Queens, to the ground as he opened the doors, leaving a metal portion of the frame crumpled like an accordion.

"This crowd was out of control," said Nassau police spokesman Lt. Michael Fleming. He described the scene as "utter chaos."

Dozens of store employees trying to fight their way out to help Damour were also getting trampled by the crowd, Fleming said.

Items on sale at the store included a Samsung 50-inch Plasma HDTV for $798, a Bissel Compact Upright Vacuum for $28, a Samsung 10.2 megapixel digital camera for $69 and DVDs such as "The Incredible Hulk" for $9.

Damour, 34, was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead about 6 a.m., police said. The exact cause of death has not been determined.

A 28-year-old pregnant woman was taken to a hospital, where she and the baby were reported to be OK, said police Sgt. Anthony Repalone.

Police said criminal charges were possible in the case, but Fleming said it would be difficult to identify individual shoppers. Authorities were reviewing surveillance video.

Wal-Mart Stores Inc., based in Bentonville, Ark., called the incident a "tragic situation" and said the employee came from a temporary agency and was doing maintenance work at the store.

"The safety and security of our customers and associates is our top priority," said Dan Fogleman, a company spokesman. "At this point, facts are still being assembled and we are working closely with the Nassau County Police as they investigate what occurred."

Kimberly Cribbs, who witnessed the stampede, said shoppers were acting like "savages."

"When they were saying they had to leave, that an employee got killed, people were yelling 'I've been on line since yesterday morning,'" she said. "They kept shopping."

Shoppers around the country line up early outside stores on the day after Thanksgiving in the annual bargain-hunting ritual known as Black Friday. It got that name because it has historically been the day when stores broke into profitability for the full year.

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AP retail writers Anne D'Innocenzio and Mae Anderson and contributed to this repor

[Janice]

Wow, that's just awful. Greed is the reason this happened. What some people will do to save a buck or get a good deal is crazy. Let them live with themselves now.

[MonarC]

WTF! Someone died but the shopping must go on? SICK SICK SICK!!!

My heart and prayers goes out to the victim and his family. That is just so so sad and horrible!

[Jude The Obscure]

Man......

[phoebe7165]

Unbelievable.

I can't believe how heartless and self-absorbed some people are sometimes.

[TripperFan]

Yah, I heard about this on this afternoon's news. Talk about pathetic that people are in THAT much of a rush. So to save a few dollars, some poor guy has paid for it with his life - especially when he was a worker there - not a shopper too.

[80sTrivia]

I've said it before... the world has just lost its collective mind...

[Doodyville10019]

I read that article online this morning...my first thought was "oh my God I am so THANKFUL my husband didn't have to work this morning" - he's in retail too and I get scared because the same thing almost happened to him two years ago on Black Friday. There were a mob of people entering the store at 5 a.m. and my husband got knocked down and kicked by the mob. Fortunately, his co-workers and his manager at that time were quick on their feet and got him to safety immediately. I've been scared to death on Black Friday since. I just feel bad for the worker's family - they lost someone special to them just because people were anxious to save money. That sux!!!

[robyrob]

i think this also shows some poor planning on the part of the store involved; obviously if you have an angry mob waiting to burst through the doors there should be some precautionary measures taken - like get a couple of security guards and some barricades and only let people in one at a time in an orderly manner.

[TripperFan]

Originally Posted by Doodyville10019

I read that article online this morning...my first thought was "oh my God I am so THANKFUL my husband didn't have to work this morning" - he's in retail too and I get scared because the same thing almost happened to him two years ago on Black Friday. There were a mob of people entering the store at 5 a.m. and my husband got knocked down and kicked by the mob. Fortunately, his co-workers and his manager at that time were quick on their feet and got him to safety immediately. I've been scared to death on Black Friday since. I just feel bad for the worker's family - they lost someone special to them just because people were anxious to save money. That sux!!!

Absolute insanity and lack of respect for your fellow human anymore.

[MonarC]

Originally Posted by robyrob

i think this also shows some poor planning on the part of the store involved; obviously if you have an angry mob waiting to burst through the doors there should be some precautionary measures taken - like get a couple of security guards and some barricades and only let people in one at a time in an orderly manner.

Im sure they will next year. Those people should be charged with murder. I hope they will be able to charge someone with this senseless death.

[Karen64]

I wonder if they had the security cams going like they always do...maybe they could pick out the ones involved with knocking him over and stepping on him... It'd probably be hard to pick faces out, though, with a crowd that large.
That's so sad what happened.
That's why I've come to dislike Christmas so much--it's become all about shop shop shop!! and spend, spend spend!! Too many people have forgotten the real reason we celebrate

[catlover79]

Sick, sick, sick.

[PrettyinPink55]

Complete maddness!!!!

[BarneyFife]

Hopefuly that will put an end to this madness.