Cluttered aisles, emergency exits cause more shutdowns of Dollar General stores

BURKE COUNTY, N.C. — A Burke County Dollar General store is closed for the second time within the past year, due to cluttered aisles that cause a fire hazard.

The Burke County Fire Marshal forced the Glen Alpine store to close Thursday after it failed inspections. Five of the county’s ten Dollar Generals have been temporarily shut down within the past year.

Channel 9 reported on a similar situation in 2022, when conditions had gotten so poor in the store that OSHA became involved. After the investigation, stores across the southeast faced fines of more than a million dollars.

Shoppers said emergency exits and aisles were filled with items and boxes to the point where they could barely walk through.

Now, only a year later, fire hazards are still a problem for the store’s customers. Channel 9′s Dave Faherty met with the Burke County fire inspector, Rob Biahop, who explained what they look for and how long the store has to make those safety changes.

>>> At noon, hear from the county fire inspector about the state of the stores and possible repercussions if changes aren’t made.

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