Mum reveals horror moment she found daughter, 19, burned to death in Walmart oven | World | News
A devastated mother has described the terrifying moment she discovered her 19-year-old daughter was burned to death in a walk-in oven at a Walmart store in Canada. The tragedy, which occurred on October 19, 2024, in the bakery section of a Halifax, Nova Scotia, supermarket, recently saw the conclusion of a 16-month workplace safety investigation.
Mandip Kaur made the gruesome find after searching desperately for Gursimran Kaur, who had disappeared from the workshop for over an hour. Ms Kaur, who works with her daughter, had asked colleagues if they had seen the teenager, but they initially dismissed her concerns and suggested she was simply busy with customers elsewhere in the department store.
Ms Kaur said: “I opened the door and there he was. I couldn’t stop myself. I was lying on the floor with him for five or 10 minutes. I didn’t know what happened.”
He tried to call Gürsimran’s phone many times, but could not be reached. That’s when Ms. Kaur noticed a tar-like black-brown liquid leaking from the commercial furnace, which could reach temperatures of 400°C. When he opened the heavy door, he saw his daughter’s body burned beyond recognition.
Halifax Regional Police were alerted to a report of a woman being “locked inside the oven” around 9:30 p.m. Police teams arrived at the scene and determined that Gürsimran was taken out of the oven and the woman died at the scene. Although police initially investigated the case as a possible murder, a month later they determined the case was not suspicious and “did not constitute a crime.”
On February 27, 2026, the Canadian Department of Labor officially cleared Walmart of any security breaches. The final report concluded that the equipment was in proper working order and no regulations were breached.
The store closed for four months following the death and has since removed the built-in models and replaced them with smaller ovens.
Despite the official findings, Ms Kaur angrily rejected any suggestion that her daughter had committed suicide. The couple had moved to Canada from India just two years ago and had spent the previous evening laughing and celebrating with their family.
Ms Kaur added: “Does he look depressed? He was so happy.”
Walmart Canada stated: “We are heartbroken by this tragedy and have offered 24/7 virtual care and on-site grief counseling to our staff.”
Following the conclusion of the security investigation last month, the bakery department remains in a new order. Local community members continued to leave flowers at the site in memory of the teenager.
