This is the teenage girl who ‘baked to death’ in a Walmart walk-in oven, only to be found by her own mother.
Gurismran Kaur, 19, was working alongside her unnamed mother at the store in Halifax, Nova Scotia, on Saturday evening when she met the horrific fate.
A GoFundMe set up to raise money for the youngster explained that Gursimran’s mother would regularly check in on her daughter while they worked shifts together.
But she became worried when she hadn’t seen her in the store for an extended period and went searching for her.
She ended up finding her daughter’s ‘charred remains’ inside the bakery oven when another staff member noticed ‘leakage’ coming from the area.
Gursimran Kaur, 19, tragically died in the Halifax superstore she worked at in Nova Scotia on Saturday night
A family spokesperson has since said Gursimran’s relatives are crushed by her tragic death.
According to the community appeal, Gursimran’s ‘charred remains were found inside the walk in oven in the Bakery after a few hours.
‘Imagine the horror that her mother experienced who herself opened the oven, when someone pointed out to the ”leakage” from it.’
Gursimran’s phone was ‘unreachable’, which is when her mother began panicking, as it was ‘unusual for her to switch her phone off during the day.’
‘Gursimran’s mother tried to locate her after not seeing for one hour,’ the Maritime Sikh Society Executive said in the appeal, which has already raised $46,000.
‘She asked around, but everyone brushed aside thinking that she may be somewhere helping a customer.’
Gursimran has been remembered as a ‘beautiful girl who came to Canada with big dreams.’
She and her mother arrived in Nova Scotia less than three years ago.
Her father and brother are still in India, and the community are frantically trying to raise the funds to get them over to Canada.
‘This family’s sufferings are unimaginable and indescribable. They need your support to get through this horrific time,’ the appeal read.
Harjit Seyan, president of Canada’s Maritime Sikh Society, told Global News that his community has been supporting the Gursimran’s traumatized family since her death on October 19.
‘The immediate family is absolutely shocked,’ Seyan said.
‘They are in a kind of a trauma. We are really sorry to hear of such a tragic event.’
Harjit Seyan, president of Canada’s Maritime Sikh Society, told Global News that his community has been supporting the family of a Walmart worker who died in a walk-in oven
Mourners have been arriving at the superstore in droves since the tragedy, laying flowers and paying tribute to the victim and her family
It comes after Canada’s national broadcaster CBC News said their sources had told them the appliance at the Halifax store ‘did not lock.’
That raises disturbing new questions about the death, with previous reports highlighting a 911 call that said the woman was trapped in the oven.
Mourners have been arriving at the superstore in droves since the tragedy, laying flowers and paying tribute to the victim and her family.
The young woman had only arrived in Canada within the last three years and had formed close bonds with the Maritime Sikh Society.
‘It’s pretty distressing given young people come here with hopes and dreams,’ board member Satnam Singh Randhawa previously said.
‘They’re working hard and this is what happens.’
The oven was industrial and large enough for a person to step inside.
While the exact brand of the oven involved in the incident has not yet been revealed, other Walmart stores around the United States are known to have ovens like the one pictured installed
Singh expects a religious service to be held in Halifax after the woman’s body is released by the medical examiner, who is still determining her official cause of death. An altar at the victim’s temple is pictured
Police told the publication that the young woman had been working the day of the tragedy. Officers are no longer on the scene, but an investigation is still ongoing.
The Nova Scotia Department of Labour has since issued a ‘stop work order’ for the bakery itself, as well as one piece of Walmart equipment. They have not specified which piece of equipment is under that order.
Balbir Singh, secretary of the Maritime Sikh Society, said the victim’s mother is also in Canada, and is receiving ‘psychological counselling.’
‘Efforts are underway to bring other immediate family members from India,’ he said.
Singh expects a religious service to be held in Halifax after Gursimran’s is released by the medical examiner, who is still determining her official cause of death.
Distressing audio of the emergency services dispatch call has since been released, detailing the unfolding tragedy to first responders.
The dispatch officer said there was a ‘female locked in an oven in the bakery.’
‘Oven is on. Unsure if staff are able to turn it off.’
Police told the publication that the young woman had been working the day of the tragedy. Officers are no longer on the scene, but an investigation is still ongoing
The teenager was working at the Halifax store in Nova Scotia when she became trapped inside a walk-in oven in the bakery on Saturday night
By the time first responders arrived on the scene, they told dispatch the woman ‘was out of the oven.’
She died at the scene.
Martin Cromwell, a police officer in Halifax, described the investigation was ‘complex.’
He said: ‘We understand the public is involved, and we just wanted to encourage the public to be patient with our investigation and be mindful that there are family members and coworkers involved.’
Walmart Canada said they were ‘heartbroken and our deepest thoughts are with our associate and their family. We extend our sincerest condolences to those who were closest to them.’
Staff rostered on to work this week will still be paid despite store closures. The store will remain closed until further notice.
A dispatch officer described the unfolding tragedy to first responders, revealing there was a ‘female locked in an oven in the bakery.’
The statement continued: ‘We’re also supporting our associates during this incredibly difficult time and have provided access to 24/7 virtual care and will provide on-site support, including grief counselling.’
Halifax Regional Police said: ‘On October 19 at approximately 9:30 pm police were called to a sudden death at Walmart located at 6990 Mumford Road. A 19-year-old woman employed at the store was found deceased.
‘Investigators are working closely with Occupational Health and Safety and the Nova Scotia Medical Examiner Service to determine the cause and manner of death.
‘The investigation is in the early stages no further details are available at this time.’