The Walmart Supercenter in Worcester, Massachusetts, was shut down after 23 of its employees tested positive for COVID-19.

Advertisement State corrects number of Worcester Walmart employees with COVID-19 to 23 Share Shares Copy Link Copy

A Walmart store in Worcester was temporarily closed this week after nearly two dozen employees tested positive for the coronavirus.Walmart corporate offices say 23 employees at the the 25 Tobias Boland Way store have tested positive. On Thursday, Massachusetts Secretary of Health and Human Services Marylou Sudders misspoke when she said 41 employees had tested positive, according to DPH. Walmart's corporate team reaffirmed Friday that only 23 workers were infected. The Walmart was ordered closed by the city on Wednesday for a deep-cleaning by an independent professional cleaning company."Our inspectional services department will inspect the facility to make sure that the cleaning was done in compliance with our guidelines," said Worcester City Manager Ed Augustus.Augustus said Thursday that about 275 of the store's 400 would be tested for COVID-19 at the Worcester location by the end of the day. He said the remainder of the employees would be tested Friday morning.During an inspection on Tuesday, city officials found that not all employees of the Walmart were wearing a face covering while on duty. The company told NewsCenter 5 that a mandatory mask policy has been in place for all Walmart employees for at least the past 10 days.Augustus said city medical director Dr. Michael Hirsh ordered the store closed, and will not allow it to reopen until it has been professionally cleaned and all employees have been tested for coronavirus.Worcester city manager Edward Augustus said the store had a cluster of COVID-19 cases over the last three weeks, with the bulk of the cases occurring over the past seven days. Augustus said the earliest positive test results were received on April 8 and the bulk of them in the past seven days. A Walmart spokesperson said the Worcester store was slated for a one-day closure on Thursday as part of a company-initiated program of cleaning and restocking in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.The store decided to close early on Wednesday after working and coordinating with city officials, according to the spokesperson.Walmart initially planned to reopen the store on Friday, but the spokesperson said the company is working with Worcester officials to ensure that all the necessary steps are taken before reopening.According to the spokesperson, most of the associates at the Worcester store who have tested for COVID-19 have not been to work in the last several days.Walmart confirmed a third-party specialist will be sanitizing the store on Thursday. The company's Abington location was also closed for Thursday for a one-day cleaning, and Walmart's Springfield location was recently closed for one day to undergo cleaning and restocking. Augustus said the store had a cluster of COVID-19 cases over the last three weeks, with the bulk of the cases occurring over the past seven days. He said the earliest positive test results were received on April 8.City officials said they were alerted to the situation by a social media post about all the cases and then looked into it.