Hampton, Va. - "She was just knocked out on the ground.”
Ciera Fitchett arrived just as the ambulances were pulling away from the Walmart on Mercury Boulevard in Hampton Thanksgiving night.
A picture of police and medics outside the store posted to Twitter at 8:04pm...just four minutes after the store unveiled their Black Friday specials.
“I was coming in to get some games, and next thing you know, they took the games away. I asked why, and they said the manager just got trampled,” said Fitchett.
Store employees confirmed to NewsChannel 3 that the manager, stationed in the electronics department, got caught in the middle of rowdy customers and a popular new video game.
Things get heated at Black Friday sale at Kmart
“I think its ridiculous that people come out here and do things of that sort,” said Alicia Sargent, another Walmart customer.
The same scene played out in other Walmarts around the country.
A YouTube video went viral early on Black Friday, showing shoppers fighting over new smartphones.
Another clip shows people waiting until 8 p.m., crowded around a pair of $5 headphones, and once the deal went on sale, all decorum went out the window.
“It was crazy. We went to two different Walmarts where people were getting trampled, pushing and punching each other,” said Jennifer Cobb, who hit the Black Friday sales. “It’s horrible…so bad how people hurt each other for things that go on sale.”
Ciera tried her luck again at Walmart on Friday afternoon, hoping this time, she could get the game she came for without risking her safety.
“I’m just coming to get my games and I’m gone. Nobody mess with me, please!”
NewsChannel 3 reached out to Walmart Corporate offices, and they say the employee went to the hospital as a precautionary measure, but she is doing okay.
They also point out that at their thousands of stores around the country, it was for the most part an orderly and safe Black Friday, and customers left happy with their purchases.
