3rd worker at London, Ont., Real Canadian Superstore tests positive for coronavirus

For the second time in less than a week, an employee at the Real Canadian Superstore on Oxford Street East at Gammage Street in London, Ont., has tested positive for the novel coronavirus, the health unit confirmed Wednesday.

Details about the new case remain limited, but health unit officials said the worker was not a food handler at the store, as was the case on Saturday when a staff member in the store’s bakery tested positive.

The latest case, now the third at the business since the pandemic began, was identified through testing and screening the health unit initiated in the wake of Saturday’s positive case, said Dr. Alex Summers, associate medical officer of health at the Middlesex-London Health Unit (MLHU).

The health unit would not say when the staff member had worked last at the store or where in the store they worked.

“We have been able to identify the close contacts of this individual for whom we are concerned any additional exposure would have required quarantine,” Summers said.

“Those close contacts will be identified and will be contacted and instructed. We don’t have any additional concern that we need to provide to the public at this time, up and above what we’ve provided previously over the weekend.”

In Saturday’s case, the health unit said the employee had worked between May 20 and 23 in the store’s bakery. Anyone who had purchased baked goods that were store-prepared or store-packaged during that time was being advised to dispose of the products.

Customers were also advised to take the online COVID-19 self-assessment survey and monitor for symptoms of COVID-19.

Summers said the health unit was continuing to test employees at the store and would “continue to work our way through the people that we want to test.”

“I think we still have more results that we are hoping to acquire over the next couple of days,” Summers said.

The first case at the store also involved a bakery worker who had worked at the store on April 25 and 26 while they were symptomatic.

A case was also reported at the Real Canadian Superstore in west London in late April.

Last week, a positive case was reported at the Darryll and Tracy’s No Frills near Highbury Avenue and Huron Street involving a staff member who last worked on May 12.