Family Dollar closes Arkansas distribution facility after rodent infestation

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Family Dollar closes Arkansas distribution facility after rodent infestation

Family Dollar shuttered an Arkansas distribution facility after federal health officials discovered a rodent infestation that could potentially contaminate several products.

On Wednesday, Travis McNail, vice president of human resources at Dollar Tree, said in a letter to West Memphis Mayor Marco McClendon that the company permanently closed the West Memphis facility. Dollar Tree owns and operates Family Dollar locations.

McNail said that there will be a separation in July.

The vast majority of terminations, about 230, will occur on July 17. The letter said that another 90 employees will be let go by October as a result of the closure.

The FDA recovered more than 1,100 dead rodents from the facility during an inspection in January.

The FDA said that the company's internal records indicated the collection of more than 2,300 rodents between Mar. There is a history of infestation, as shown by 29 and Sep. 17, 2021. Robert Bradford, a former employee of the West Memphis warehouse, previously told FOX Business he had seen more than 100 rats in the facility since he started working there in the spring of 2021.

After the FDA inspection, the company recalled several products including drugs, medical devices, cosmetics and dietary supplements, as well as human and pet food products, which were stored in the West Memphis facility, and were shipped to 404 of its facilities across Tennessee, Arkansas, Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana.

Rodent contamination may cause the spread of Salmonella and infectious diseases, which may pose the greatest risk to infants, children, pregnant women, elderly and immunocompromised people. McClendon said in a statement to FOX Business that he was concerned for the workers after hearing of the closure.

My leadership team has been busy working with local and state partners to make sure that the affected displaced workers have every resource available to find new employment, to get their lives back on track, McClendon said.

The mayor expressed confidence in being able to find a new tenant for the facility, but he said that the number one priority is to help those families affected by the sudden announcement.