“A young beautiful girl who came to Canada with big dreams” is how a 19-year-old Halifax Walmart employee is being remembered, as her friends and family struggle with the devastating details of her death.
The Maritime Sikh Society has identified the victim of last Saturday night’s incident as Gursimran Kaur, with the permission of her mother.
Both mother and daughter are a part of the Sikh community and had been working at the Walmart store on Mumford Road for about two years.
It was her mother, according to the society, who found Kaur inside the store’s bakery department while the store was still open. Halifax Regional Police have confirmed the victim’s body was found in a walk-in oven.
“The community has been shocked by the whole incident and they feel for it and of course the immediate family is upset with the shock, they’re in a kind of a trauma,” said Harjit Seyan, the society’s president.
“We are really, really upset about the whole thing of course and really sorry to hear such a tragic event.”
According to the Maritime Sikh Society, Kaur and her mother had moved to Canada within the past three years from the U.K., and were originally from India. Her relatives, including her father and brother, are still living in India.
“The Maritime Sikh Society has also arranged for psychological counselling for the family, for the people who are suffering and all that. So we are really with the family — talking to them,” Sevan said.
The society has also set up a GoFundMe campaign to raise money for funeral expenses, and to bring family members here for last rites. It surpassed its $50,000 goal in 10 hours, and as of 4 p.m. Thursday has raised nearly $130,000.
In the meantime, society members have helped Kaur’s father apply for a visa to come to Canada and be by his wife’s side.
“They are in grief. They are in pain and they are in agony about (the) kind of situation they are (in),” said Balbir Singh, the group’s secretary.
“It’s very important because the mom is alone here and the rest of the family is in India. So although the community is providing the support … if the husband comes here, that will be a really good thing for the family.”
Investigation ongoing, store remains closed
The investigation into Kaur’s death continues, and involves police, the province’s Labour Department and the medical examiner’s office.
First responders were called to the store at around 9:30 p.m. last Saturday for a report of a “sudden death.” Shoppers and staff were asked to leave the building, and the store has remained closed since.
Halifax Regional Police confirmed a few days later that the employee had been found in a walk-in oven.
Police are still attempting to determine the cause and manner of the young woman’s death and have said the investigation could be lengthy.
“The investigation is very complex. And our investigators are working very diligently along those assisting agencies. And so to provide a timeline would be not possible at this time,” Halifax Regional Police spokesperson Const. Martin Cromwell said.
Police have also asked the public to be mindful about spreading rumours, especially on social media, as the story gains attention nationally and worldwide.
“We do urge the public to allow us to do our investigation, to be patient and to consider the family and the co-workers,” Cromwell said.
A spokesperson for the province’s Labour Department said a stop-work order had been issued for the bakery and “one piece of equipment” at the Walmart store.
Walk-in ovens, also referred to as cabinet or batch ovens, allow for curing, drying or baking in batches using wheeled racks or carts. They are often found in large-volume bakeries in places such as supermarkets and big-box stores.
In a statement, Walmart Canada said the company is heartbroken and their thoughts are with the woman’s family. They directed all further questions to police, and added that 24-7 virtual care and grief counselling was being made available to staff.
The company also confirmed to Global News that employees will continue to be paid for shifts during the store’s closure in Halifax, but it will consider “alternate work arrangements” if the store has to be closed for a “longer-than-anticipated period of time.”
— with files from The Canadian Press and Global News’ Gabby Rodrigues