Monday, December 20, 2021

LIKE AMAZON, LACKING SAFETY TRAINING 
QVC distribution center fire in North Carolina leaves one employee missing
By Adam Schrader
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Firefighters with the Rocky Mount Fire Department are seen battling the blaze at a QVC distribution center in North Carolina. 
Photo courtesy Rocky Mount Fire Department/Facebook

Dec. 19 (UPI) -- A massive five-alarm fire that broke out at one of the home shopping television channel QVC's distribution centers left at least one employee reported missing.

First responders were still searching for Kevon Ricks, 21, who went missing after the blaze broke out at the 1.2 million-square-foot facility in Rocky Mount, N.C., around 2:02 a.m. Saturday, according to the Edgecombe County Sheriff's Office.

His aunt Stephanie Randolph wrote in a Facebook post that the family hadn't seen or heard from him since 1:15 a.m. when he was on break.

Ricks had worked at QVC for about three weeks and his possessions including his phone and wallet were still in his car, Randolph told WRAL.

Officials are still working to determine the cause of the fire, and no injuries or deaths have been reported.

"Still no word for all who was wondering about him. So unlike him trust me," Randolph posted Saturday night.

The sheriff's office said that the fire happened inside one of the main warehouses at the site, and it took more than 33 agencies to help contain the blaze.

The fire is being investigated by North Carolina's State Bureau of Investigation, the North Carolina Office of State Fire Marshal, and the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

"There is one individual who is unaccounted for at this time. If you have any information on the fire, or if you have any concerns of employees of QVC that you have not had contact with, then contact the Edgecombe County Sheriff's Office," the agency urged on Facebook.

The Rocky Mount Area Chamber of Commerce said in a statement on Facebook that the fire could affect as many as 2,500 families in the area.

"Our thoughts and prayers are with the employees of QVC and our brave first responders," the chamber posted.

QVC has four other distribution centers in Suffolk, Va.; Lancaster, Pa.; Florence, S.C.; and Ontario, Calif.

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