Black Friday Stampede Kills Worker At Wal-Mart

Update: The New York Daily News is now saying that reports of a woman having a miscarriage during a Wal-Mart Black Friday stampede are unfounded.

A 28-year-old pregnant woman was knocked to the floor during the mad rush. She was hospitalized for observation, police said. Early witness accounts that the woman suffered a miscarriage were unfounded, police said.

From The New York Daily News:

A worker died after being trampled and a woman miscarried when hundreds of shoppers smashed through the doors of a Long Island Wal-Mart Friday morning, witnesses said.

The unidentified worker, employed as an overnight stock clerk, tried to hold back the unruly crowds just after the Valley Stream store opened at 5 a.m.

Additional reports from NY Newsday say the "34-year-old Wal-Mart worker died Friday morning after he was knocked to the ground after 'a throng of shoppers physically broke down the doors,' pushing their way into the store at the Green Acres Mall in Valley Stream, Nassau police said."

Comments

[MiddletownHal]

In San Francisco, Iraq Veterans Against the War, "detained" almost a dozen "suspects" as hundreds of shoppers stopped to watch the street theater.

http://www.rainbowpuddle.com/Albums2

[Bocado]

I vowed to never ever go shopping on black Friday.
The stress alone is not worth one's mental health let alone physical health or LIFE.

People clamoring to save money on things they WANT and don't NEED.

WAKE UP PEOPLE!

We are letting ourselves be owned by our possessions.

[blastocyst]

"Wake Up"?
You are asking the contingent of society that stands on-line many hours for an iPhone or a video game to come to their senses. In that credit and jobs are drying up there may be a constriction of this type of conspicuous consumption.

[ljwaldron]

I stood in line or an iPhone; it was friendly, the store manager and employees were regularly monitoring the line. They provided water, (this is Phoenix) brought out a sample of what we were waiting to purchase and asked if we had questions, did we want a demo, etc. Basically they entertained us the entire time and assured an orderly entrance into the store.

It takes awareness and concern for your customers to treat them as human beings, not cattle. That is my sense of the difference in the 2 situations.

At the Apple Store, I feel appreciated, welcome and safe. Can Walmart shoppers say the same? Even before this debacle.

[JuniorIsaac]

I have been waiting in line for the last three Harry Potter books. There were only a few shankings though. Love or hate them, you have to admire the millions of people waiting at midnight to buy a book

[Sparky123]

I vow never to shop at Wal Mart. Never have and never will. Cheap is cheap and what a sham.

[dartagnan]

"The American Way of Life: Spending money we don't have on things we don't need to impress people we don't know." -- Thomas Merton

[viflyer]

I can almost GUARANTEE you that Wall Mart did NOT hire enough emplyees to handle the rush. AND I can almost guarantee you that they SPOKE to the police to cover themsleves just in case something went wrong.

This is a ruthless company that detests it's workers, and is a true symbol of the Republican economic model where workers have no representaion and are at the mercy of their employer. I hope they get sued, and I hope that the unions, under an Obama administration get in there and force them to start taking some of their obscene profits and start paying their workers a living wage.

In fact, I would like to see every worker in this country become unionized. It's long overdue that this country values the people that make it work and not worship at the alter of the wallstreet THIEVES.

[blastocyst]

WalMart* stands in-part for forging a new American identity.
In another generation's span from now we won't know the difference.

[demolove]

Brilliantly put. Amen!

[SwingingFromCenter]

All the employees in the world wouldn't have stopped that. Look at the story. THey BROKE the metal gate. That means that they were all crowding around the door and the second it even STARTED to slide open, they went in a mad dash tryingto get to their cheap Wal-Mart crap.

[dandypuddin]

There was a very easy way to prevent this from happening in the first place. I agree you can't stop a stampede; you can only prevent it from starting.

[lletaa]

there was a 50% discount in their christian book store department, thats why the mad dash.

[harriettubman]

If this Walmart serves several thousand people because they're not allowed in the NYC limits due to the unions as I have read, this can't be blamed on Walmart.

Regardless of what people think about Walmart, they offer great things for low prices. No one has been able to prove that Walmart has ruined anyone's life yet. When they do I will stop shopping there. We all have the right to work and shop where we want. Look at what China is doing to all the American companies over there.

[Querent]

Walmart offers cheap junk made by slave labor in other countries so they can avoid having to pay a living wage to workers in this country. Last year there were at least five class action suits brought against Walmart by its employees, for everything from locking them into a warehouse overnight where they could not get need medical attention for an accidental injury to outright cheating them out of overtime wages they were forced to work.

You and others shop there because your consciences are flexible enough to convince you that by supporting this predatory company with your consumer dollars, you are not taking part in their destructive, anti-social policies. But even though you won't admit it, you are.

[TruckerJohn]

Tell us what is China doing to US companies? I thought China was the source of most of Walmarts stock!
Lets face it Walmart have created a few things, their employees are the working poor, they have destroyed the livelyhoods of thousands of small businesses across the country, when they move into town with their mininum wage slaves.
Have a read of Barbara Ehrenbach's book "Nickel and Dimed (on) not getting by in America". you may form a different view.

[Culturemaven]

HUFFPO ~ take down the picture of a Target store that is accompanying this article!!!
Put up a photo of Wal Mart to be accurate.

[Idytme]

Here are the photos of the Walmart in question:
http://www.nydailynews.com/money/galleries/walmart_stampede_captured_in_pictures/walmart_stampede_captured_in_pictures.html

[Culturemaven]

OMG, that is an insanely huge crowd. Of course there's going to be a stampede. Shame on Wal Mart.
Thank you for the photos link.

[carlgt1]

what a HUGE mob - obviously a tragedy waiting to happen. they should have had a lottery for timed entrances or something.

plus -- what in the hell was so "on special" or in high-demand that would have lured all of those people out at 5AM? there's no "Cabbage Patch Doll" this year, right?

[Jaxy]

Nonetheless, I suspect that Wal-Mart does bear some responsibility in the tragedy that occurred yesterday.

An effort to maintain shoppers' orderly entry to the store would have been prudent.

Especially as it is widely known (this not being the first 'Black Friday' event in history) that when you advertise early openings, time-sensitive deep savings and project to go from 'the red' to 'the black' in less than 24 hours, something unusual is likely to happen. And it did. Which is so very sad.

[Plashyfen]

I was in a crowd situation like this 40 years ago and I'm still scarred from it (I was not shopping--I was waiting for a Beatles movie to open!). I am willing to bet no one in the Wal-Mart crowd callously let the guy die under their feet--they probably simply had no way to get away from him.

When thousands of people are packed together like asparagus, if someone slips and falls, the crowd cannot do a thing about it because there is nowhere to go. The pressure from far back in the crowd is immense and you can't even move your arms away from your sides. You can barely even breathe. It is a truly terrifying experience.

Wal-Mart should be boycotted, sued, run out of business for allowing this situation when they should have known it would happen, but the people in the crowd--having not done the wise thing and stayed at home in the first place--probably could not do a thing.

One very good reason, folks, to avoid any situation where you think there MIGHT be a massive, uncontrollable crowd. That's what I have done now for 40 years. And there has never once, in all those years, been a case when I regretted not being part of a massive, uncontrollable crowd.

[Jaxy]

First of all, Barack Obama was protected by the Secret Service while on campaign. Which is very good security.

Secondly, unlike 'Black Friday' shoppers, the huge number of Obama rally attendees were there to support him, not BUY him and offer same as a holiday gift ... Accordingly, their surging toward the stage on which Mr. Obama stood would really not have helped.

[CuriousPerson]

So are you saying the crowd's actions is what made the difference?

[VOTER]

Security at such an event is obvious.

It was obvious Walmart had none.

Walmart's new corporate name: WARMART.

[VOTER]

Caring for the safety and security for so many is the difference.

Walmart expected the crowds.

Walmart didn't care about the well being of not only their
shoppers but their employees as well.

[Jaxy]

I would think so. Each of the crowds in question had a different perception of why they were present, and what their purpose was.

The Obama rally crowds were respectful and supportive. The Wal-Mart shopping crowd was fanatically self-serving, and fixated on acquisition.

[VOTER]

Curious Person are you a Wal-mart employee?

Perhaps a store manager who sat safely in their office
watching the bedlam inside the store on a video monitor?

Watched and did nothing.

[fixedriddle]

This is so unfortunate. It's ironic, because this is not the holiday spirit. Consumerism has already taken over the true meaning of Christmas, Christ.

[SwingingFromCenter]

I hate to break it to you, but Christ is not the true meaning of Christmas.

The true meaning of "Christmas" is a pagan holiday called Yule, and it's a celebration of rebirth. "Christ" was born sometme in September. The Christian church just moved it to December after they subjugated the pagans to make them more amenable to converting.

Educate yourself.

[PWM]

This begs the question fo Christ's existence

[PWM]

Christmas predated Christ.

[tjwdraws]

happy birthday baby jesus

[demolove]

I aint scared
Hell wont freeze us
Cause I got my Wal Mart Jesus
sittin on the dashboard of my car

[SwingingFromCenter]

You're a few months late. Jesus was born in September.

[TruckerJohn]

Puleeeeeese no more Jesus, were talking about real issues here!

[JuniorIsaac]

Well, maybe if more people followed his teachings we wouldnt be having these issues would we?

[Roose]

I keep hearing that times are hard and people are losing their jobs, yet you'd think these people would be waiting on soup lines and stampeding for food, instead they're waiting on lines to shop for yet more junk and looking to put more debt on their credit cards. Sad state of affairs.

[demolove]

You're right Roose, but the lemmings are on the loose! We are just running all the red lights on the road to Perdition!

[walkaway]

It may have been only a few people in the crowd that started the "push". The folks in front of them were in as much danger as the poor clerk and could have been injured or killed by trying to stop. That's why they call it a stampede. If the crowd is large enough and fast enough anyone who stops or falls in front of it will be run over.

It is dangerous and irresponsible to incite a crowd and not be prepared to control it. I have worked in operations for events and we always roped off sections of our crowds into manageable groups and allowed them in one group at a time.

These stores like the frenzy they create. It's part of their marketing to whip the crowds to increase the sense of urgency to purchase.

I believe they are entirely at fault.

[LovesickChick]

Walkaway, instead of faulting one or the other, we need to look at our priorities as a nation. Not only was "War-Mart" responsible for the whole deal, they were responsible for the deadly consequences--yet so were the shoppers, because they were obviously just as crazed. Wouldn't it be awwwesome if the store admitted their inadequacies in the situation and offered apologies (to say the very least) and reparations? The challenge of this country is to take responsibility for our actions--instead of putting it onto the person next to us. Only then will we be able to forgive and live in peace, because we will be conscious of our actions even before we commit them.

[CuriousPerson]

To all of you blaming Wal-Mart"

If there was a rush to the stage at one of Obama's Huge 50,000 + rallies and someone got trampled, would you blame Obama?

[VOTER]

Security was practiced which is why, thankfully, nothing so horrible happened.

Walmart refuses to do anything to prevent this bedlam.

Why?

[Lotus19]

There's a clip below of a woman in a store surrounded by hundreds of people as she's throwing cheap crap to them. Thank goodness she wasn't rushed.

[CuriousPerson]

What kind of security was practiced exactly that prevented a crown of 50,000 or 100,000 from surging forward when Obama came on stage?

[krayon]

because WalMart is only concerned about security INSIDE their stores... don't want anything stolen lest they lose some of their huge profits.... but once you're out the doors, you're on your own... and I'm sure they were more than willing to pay for the advertising campaign that drew all the customers to their store.

[Lotus19]

This has nothing to do with Obama. Flagged for being off-topic.

[CuriousPerson]

grow up.

[glorialovelace]

It's a good analogy. Because aside from the pushing and shoving that caused somebody to fall, people shopping at the Wal Mart were so depraved that they trod over a fallen person -- thereby killing him -- in order to get to a pile of cheap TV sets.

[tjwdraws]

shouldn't the fact that large numbers of people can attend events (such as an Obama rally or concert) in an orderly fashion indicate Wal-Mart did not care about the safety of their employees or patrons enough to hire crowd control or better yet stop this "door buster deal' crap all together. Boycott big box stores this holiday season!!!!

[CuriousPerson]

Again I ask, what crowd control exists at a 50,000 person event that stops the crowd from trampling themselves?

[wanked]

yea, but your talking american consumerism here. the national religion. All rational behavior out the window....

[Keith52]

Talk about your non sequitur, what does an Obama rally have to do with people standing at a Walmart for the, what, 10th year in a row, a deal on a flat screen?

How about a comparison of a rock concert or a church crowd? Or people waiting in line to give blood after a disaster like 9/11? Makes no sense to compare the two. Think about it.

[isom74]

Translation: I didn't vote for Obama and I'm bitter and angry and if it was my family member that was killed, I would just blame it on "personal responsibility".

[Weeza]

A very disturbing and sad story. I cried over this. I can only imagine what this poor soul felt while he was being trampled. My heart goes out to his family - i just cannot imagine people being so indifferent to the loss of a human life

[Warmglobe]

It is a sad commentary..we have to work hard to get people to vote but have no problem getting them to wait overnight for a stupid store opening

[Jaxy]

I find the trampling death of the gentleman deplorable. It is also my opinion that this tragedy occurred, in part, because our society is easiy led on how to behave.

Now, I am not speaking of the regular good societal mores with which we are imbued from childhood onward, e.g.: Respect our elders, treat others well, share our toys, etc.

My gripe is with how we allow others (especially those with an unmistakable financial stake in the outcome of those actions) to dictate to us how to comport ourselves.

It is this tendency to mindlessly bow to the demands of others that cause us to stand in front of a darkened store, with a hundred or so restless and/or suspicious-looking strangers, in 25-degree weather, at 3:30 a.m. , the day after Thanksgiving. And why do people do it? Well, because the retailers suggested that if we do not, our lives, as we know them, will come to a screeching and
miserable halt.

You know, as evidenced by: our spouse witholding intimacies due to our failure to save a few dollars on holiday gifts; our children being seriously grudgeful because we did not secure two units of the latest electronic toy; our self-flagellation for lacking the appropriate level of follow-the-leader allegiance.

That being said, imagine the thoughts of my fellow shoppers when I strolled into the local grocery at 11:00 a.m. on Thanksgiving Day, and nonchalantly picked up 2 FROZEN turkeys ...

[glorialovelace]

"I find the trampling death of the gentleman deplorable. It is also my opinion that this tragedy occurred, in part, because our society is easiy led on how to behave."

It doesn't help that the store is now being blamed for the trampling. "Blaming others" should not be allowed to leech into the general culture. The fault is entirely that of the people whose view of human life is so depraved that they stomped on the body of a person who had been pushed down, so they could be first in line to buy cheap merchandise..

[Harry Scrote]

...And Walmart's lack of planning/security for such an occasion.