The Walmart in Prince Rupert has announced that it will be closing its doors for good, effective immediately, over safety concerns.The crime rate in the northern British Columbia city of 12,000 is more than double the provincial average."After thoughtful consideration, we've made the difficult decision to permanently close our Prince Rupert store, effective immediately," Walmart wrote in a post on Facebook. "While the store was initially closed out of concern for the safety of our associates and customers, the prolonged closure led to a larger review of the store location and operations and our long-term plans."The company acknowledged "how much the community valued this store," and noted that the decision was "only made after a full review of options."."We recognize the disappointment and challenges this closure brings," the statement continued. "We're offering complimentary prescription delivery from our Terrace store and our pharmacy team is available via phone at 1-833-812-5537 to ensure continuity of care."Terrace is one and a half hours away.While comments were locked on the post, it was shared hundreds of times by residents and outsiders alike."This is very sad," one local wrote. "There are so many people who don't have vehicles to go shopping in Terrace, especially the elders, and young families."Another described it as just the latest nail in the city's coffin, warning that soon it will be a "ghost town."Data shows that Prince Rupert has a crime rate of 14,977 incidents per 100,000 people, with violent crime and property crime accounting for 2,778 and 12,199 incidents per 100,000 people, respectively..Due to a high level of spam content being posted in our comment section below, all comments undergo manual approval by a staff member during regular business hours (Monday - Friday). Your patience is appreciated.
