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Walmart is offering counseling following the sudden death of a Halifax store employee
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Walmart is offering counseling following the sudden death of a Halifax store employee

As the investigation continues into the death of a 19-year-old Walmart employee in Nova Scotia who died in an industrial oven in the bakery department, details about her life have been revealed.

The woman who died on Saturday was identified as Gursimran Kaur in a GoFundMe campaign to support her family. She and her mother, whose name was not released, are believed to have worked at the Walmart Supercenter in Halifax, Nova Scotia, for the past two years.

A Walmart spokeswoman declined Thursday to confirm that the deceased's mother was also a store employee.

Kaur is a member of the Maritime Sikh Society Gurudwara, a society official said on Thursday.

Organizers of the GoFundMe page said Kaur's father and brother are in India and “we are trying to get them here as quickly as possible.” The details published in the post were “provided by the family and have been given to them agreed.”

As of Thursday afternoon, the GoFundMe page had raised nearly $104,000 – more than double the goal.

Asked whether Walmart has made a donation to the former worker's family and whether the company is offering special services to the team in Halifax, a Walmart spokesperson said: “We are supporting our associates during this incredibly difficult time and have 24-hour access.” to 7 virtual care and will provide on-site support, including grief counseling.”

Described as “a young, beautiful girl who came to Canada with big dreams,” Kaur and her mother were working the same shift at the Walmart Supercenter on Mumford Road in Nova Scotia's capital on Saturday evening, according to the GoFundMe post. After not seeing her daughter for an hour, Kaur's mother tried to locate her and “asked around,” the post said. “But everyone (allegedly) brushed her aside because they thought Kaur might have been somewhere (at the supercenter) helping a customer,” the post said.

After being unable to reach her daughter by phone, her mother “panicked as it was unusual for her to turn off her phone during the day.” She asked the on-site administrator for help.” Halifax Regional Police were dispatched to the scene around 9:30 p.m Crime scene was called and the 19-year-old worker was found dead.

Noting that Kaur's “charred remains” were found in the bakery's walk-in oven “after a few hours,” the post said: “Imagine the horror experienced by her mother, who opened the oven herself when someone pointed it out.”

The Halifax Walmart is closed until further notice. A stop work order has also been ordered at the bakery and an appliance at the store, according to a Nova Scotia Department of Labor, Skills and Immigration spokesperson.

The investigation is being conducted by Halifax Regional Police, the Nova Scotia Coroner and the Ministry of Labor's Occupational Health and Safety Division. All three agencies have said the investigation is expected to take some time, although without specifying how long that might take.

Halifax Regional Police Constable Martin Cromwell said Thursday: “We are not providing any updates or details at this time.” According to a coroner's spokesperson, the Nova Scotia coroner is working “closely” with police to determine the cause and to determine the type of sudden death. “The investigation is at an early stage and no further details are available at this time,” the spokesman said.

As reported, a Walmart spokesman said on Wednesday: “As police have advised, this is a very complex matter and the investigation is ongoing.”

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