JEFFERSON PARISH, La. — Walmart is closing two more stores in the Greater New Orleans area so that crews can clean and sanitize the building. The company announced it will close its Metairie (8312 Veterans Memorial Boulevard) and Kenner (3520 Williams Boulevard) stores to “thoroughly clean and sanitize the building.”
The stores will reopen at 6 a.m. on Friday, January 7.
The closures come amid drastically rising COVID-19 cases across Louisiana. The state’s health department said that the highly contagious COVID-19 Omicron variant is surging across the state, causing thousands of new cases and the number of hospitalizations in the state to triple in two weeks.
“Everything we’re doing is for the well-being of our associates and the thousands of customers we serve daily, and in consideration of guidance by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and health experts,” a statement from Walmart said. “Given the rise in positive cases, we will follow CDC guidance, which includes fully vaccinated people wearing masks in public indoor settings in counties with substantial or high transmission.”
When the store reopens Friday, Walmart says they will continue performing employee health assessments, and all unvaccinated associates must still wear face coverings.
