wal-mart

Blondie · 03-01-2007

i was in walmart today before the storm hit and when the rain came they made us come to the center of the store and stay there. is it legal to keep someone there like that or is it up to the person to decide to take the chance to leave. there were blue patches of skies outside. luckily we werent there long. anyone have this happen to them???

4Fuqua · 03-01-2007

I had this happen to me about 5 years ago in Sam's in Tuscaloosa. They were under a tornado warning and made everyone move to the center of the store. That was fine with me because I had my 6 week old with me and I was scared out of my mind!
I don't see how they can "make" you stay though. I think it should be a persons own decision if they want to be caught in the middle of it after being warned.

dillybar · 03-01-2007

This happened to me in Wal-Mart in my town. They moved everyone to the center of the store. Very claustrophobic feeling, but safe enough, I suppose. After a while, I wandered to the front door to peep outside. The man told me to step back away from the doors. Well, that just made me mad. My safety was his concern, of course. But, my gosh, I walked in on my own and I should be allowed to walk out. The storm had passed.

ladiva · 03-01-2007

I was in the Tuscaloosa mall one time and there was one out in the parking lot. You could see it from inside. They made us leave the stores and stay in the middle. They never told us we couldn't leave but I don't think anyone wanted to budge since we could look out the door and see the tornado swirling over the cars in the parking lot.

richealle · 03-02-2007

It is just a safety thing with wal-mart all of them do it. My mom and them were in Tuscaloosa today and had to do it there too.

Eagle101 · 03-02-2007

As you can see from some of the posts here, some people make bad decisions during an emergency. I don't know if it is legal or not, false imprisonment, but Wal-Mart has to have a safety plan to take care of their customers. One part of the plan is to get them away from the "hardlines" area of the store (garden center, automotive, grocery, etc) and herd them to the "softlines" area (clothing, linens,etc) during a tornado warning. You don't want a TV, can of paint or can of beans falling on your head. The best place to be is in a dressing room or under one of the round clothes racks. They provide a smaller space with some support to keep debris from falling on your head. The safety practices that Wal-Mart has adopted has saved many lives over the year. The last place you need to be is in your car during a storm.

bamablazer · 03-02-2007

Yeah my friend was in wal mart when they made them go to clothes rack, she actually found some blue jeans she liked while waiting there, LOL!!!! . I m glad they take precautions though.

Blondie · 03-02-2007

i do see your point eagle101 but im very claustophoic and when told i cant leave (even in a wide open space) i get very upset, mad, and anxious. needles to say i saw several ppl leave there stuff and hurry out the doors. i didnt wanna ever get stuck in there again.

uwa_amanda · 03-03-2007

	Quote:	blondie
	i do see your point eagle101 but im very claustophoic and when told i cant leave (even in a wide open space) i get very upset, mad, and anxious. needles to say i saw several ppl leave there stuff and hurry out the doors. i didnt wanna ever get stuck in there again.

Not to sound like a smart aleck, it's elther that or go outside and get hit by flying debris should that tornado actually have touched down that was coming in this direction, because according to the Weather Channel, a tornado was spotted in this area.

I've had the luxury of working at Walmart when a Code Black was called and they do this for the safety of their customers. It's safer to keep them all in the center of the store than to let them leave. It's kind of like a tornado drill at an elementary school.

Blondie · 03-03-2007

	Quote:	uwa_amanda
	Not to sound like a smart aleck, it's elther that or go outside and get hit by flying debris should that tornado actually have touched down that was coming in this direction, because according to the Weather Channel, a tornado was spotted in this area. I've had the luxury of working at Walmart when a Code Black was called and they do this for the safety of their customers. It's safer to keep them all in the center of the store than to let them leave. It's kind of like a tornado drill at an elementary school.

your not sounding smart aleck. i thank everyone for their advice and stories. and i do know that they were looking out for my safety. it could have been my nerves that got me so upset. i hate closed spaces. i panic and start bouncing off walls. in that case if there is bad weather again looming ill just stay at home. and in case i did, i didnt want to ruffle anyone's feathers (for lack of a better saying). i wasnt at all downing wal-mart. i was just curious.