http://thenewsdispatch.com/main.asp?Sectio...;ArticleID=6370
[quote]Merchandise To Be Destroyed, Store Still Closed
Liz Claiborne Outlet being disinfected after employee comes to work with ‘infection.’
Amanda Haverstick
The News-Dispatch
MICHIGAN CITY - Liz Claiborne Outlet Store at Lighthouse Place was suddenly closed Saturday after an infected employee came to work.
Company officials have declined to say if the infection was methticillin-resistant staphyloccoccus or some other type of infection.
Reports of MRSA infections have been reported around the country, and in some instances, have led to deaths.
On Wednesday, the store remained closed, and company officials said it will remain shuttered until its merchandise is removed and destroyed and the store completely disinfected.
The company did not say how much merchandise is in a store the size of the one at Lighthouse Place, but its value runs in the hundreds of thousands of dollars. The Michigan City store is one of 76 the $5 billion retailer operates at outlet malls in the United States.
A paper sign taped to the door of the store on the south side of the sprawling outlet mall said, "ATTENTION. Sorry for the inconvenience but our store will be closed. Thank You. Management."
Jane Randel, vice president of corporate communications for Liz Claiborne Inc. in New York City, e-mailed a statement to The News-Dispatch about the store being closed.
"An employee of the Michigan City store did have an infection, but the diagnosis of MRSA is unconfirmed," Randel said. "Regardless, we took all necessary precautions including closing the location and disinfecting the store. Moreover, the merchandise will be destroyed and replaced. The safety of our customers and employees is paramount and we will not re-open the store until it is safe to do so."
Chris Juricic, general manager of Lighthouse Place Premium Outlets, said she has receive no information coming from Liz Claiborne regarding the incident.
"We don't know what happened," Juricic said. "We have heard nothing."
As for the rest of the outlet center, Juricic said mall management regularly disinfects public areas such as benches, restrooms and playground equipment.
"Common areas through the center are always kept clean," Juricic said.
Earlier this year, an athlete at a high school in Virginia died from the disease. And on Oct. 14, a 12-year-old Brooklyn boy died of the so-called "superbug."
MRSA is spread by skin-to-skin contact or by skin-to-object contact. The Indiana State Department of Health describes MRSA as staph bacteria that has developed an immunity to the first lines of antibiotics, those related to penicillin.
The agency has created a MRSA task force to make sure state and local officials are prepared to handle an outbreak of MRSA.
Most cases of MRSA can be treated. The majority of patients recover without further incident from MRSA, but a few cases, among those with compromised immune systems, could suffer serious and potentially deadly complications.
Contact reporter Amanda Haverstick at ahaverstick@thenewsdispatch.com[quote]