The Rappahannock Area Health District says several employees of the Aldi grocery store at Four Mile Fork in Spotsylvania, have tested positive for COVID-19. This the first COVID-19 outbreak reported in the Health District, with a confirmed outbreak defined as two lab-confirmed cases that are linked by a person, place, or time outside of a household.
The store, at 5099 Jefferson Davis Highway, underwent a deep cleaning and has reopened. All exposed staff have been quarantined.
The Rapphannock Area Health District investigates all confirmed coronavirus cases, performs contact tracing, conducts case interviews and ensures preventative measures are in place.
· All employees positive for COVID-19 are isolating at home.
· All employees exposed to the COVID-19 positive cases are quarantining at home for the 14 days after their last exposure to the COVID-19 confirmed employees.
· No employees exposed to the COVID-19 positive cases are working at Aldi until their quarantine period is over.
· Cashiers are placed at least six feet apart.
· Plexiglass barriers have been installed for customer protection.
· High-touch store areas are frequently cleaned and disinfected.
· All employees are wearing face masks
· All employees are practicing social distancing and proper hand hygiene while at work.
The number of customers in the store at one time is limited (40 max).
Statement from Aldi Corporate Manager Philip Roades:
“The health and well-being of our employees and customers is our highest priority. We can confirm that we have had multiple employees who work in our store at 5099 Jefferson Davis Hwy, Fredericksburg, Virginia, test positive for COVID-19. We have asked all employees from this store to self-quarantine to focus on their health. The store was closed temporarily on April 28th for a deep cleaning performed by a third-party service, and it has since reopened with employees from other nearby ALDI locations so we can continue to serve the local community.
All employees who are in quarantine are on paid leave and we are doing all that we can to support them at this time. We have partnered with the Rappahannock Area Health District and are following its guidance as well as the advice of the CDC to ensure we continue to operate with everyone’s safety top of mind.”
