Walmart temporarily closes a third store in NJ

Walmart temporarily closed its third New Jersey store as part of what it calls a company initiative to fight COVID-19.

As when its store in Linden was shut on Tuesday and the Kearny store on Thursday, the chain said it was "assisting health officials working against the pandemic."

The closure in Manville includes a third-party company that will sanitize the store. Employees will restock the shelves.

Manville has among the lowest number of current active COVID-19 cases in Somerset County with 14 as of Monday, according to the county health department dashboard. The number was at 30 and 31 each of the two days prior.

Closures around the country

The closures are happening in other states including Texas, Wisconsin and Maine, according to Fox Business News. WGNO-TV reported a store near New Orleans was also closed. Walmart again said it was a pre-emptive decision to temporarily close the store.

"We try to get ahead of things. We see COVID cases increasing in certain communities and have a team that reviews COVID cases based on what's happening in the community specifically. We work with the local health department to determine if its best to close to pre-empt potential outbreaks," a Walmart spokeswoman told New Jersey 101.5 regarding the Linden closing.

She said an "uninformed employee" had told NBC 4 New York that 90 employees at the Linden store had tested positive with COVID-19.

Contact reporter Dan Alexander at Dan.Alexander@townsquaremedia.com or via Twitter @DanAlexanderNJ