NEW YORK – A worker was killed in the crush Friday after a throng of shoppers eager for post-Thanksgiving bargains burst through the doors at a suburban Wal-Mart, authorities said.

At least four other people were injured, and the store in Valley Stream on Long Island was closed.

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. in Bentonville, Ark., called the incident a "tragic situation" and said the employee came from a temporary agency and was doing maintenance work at the store.

"He was bum-rushed by 200 people," co-worker Jimmy Overby, 43, told the Daily News. "They took the doors off the hinges. He was trampled and killed in front of me. They took me down too. ... I literally had to fight people off my back."

Nassau County police said the 34-year-old worker was taken to a hospital where he was pronounced dead at about 6 a.m. The man's name was not released and the cause of death was not immediately known.

A police statement said shortly after the store's 5 a.m. opening time, shoppers "physically broke down the doors, knocking (the worker) to the ground."

A metal portion of the door was crumpled like an accordion.

Shoppers around the country lined up early outside stores in the annual bargain hunting ritual known as Black Friday. Many stores open early and stay open late, and some of the most dramatic bargains are available in limited quantities.

Among the bargains offered by Wal-Mart for Friday were Samsung 50-inch high definition Plasma TVs for less than $800.

Witnesses told the Daily News that before the store was closed, eager shoppers streamed past emergency crews as they worked furiously to save the worker's life.

"They were working on him, but you could see he was dead," said Halcyon Alexander, 29. "People were still coming through."

A 28-year-old pregnant woman was taken to a hospital for observation, and she and the unborn baby were both reported to be OK, said Sgt. Anthony Repalone, a Nassau County police spokesman. Four or five other people suffered minor injuries, he said.

Ellen Davis, a spokeswoman at National Retail Federation, said the group knew of no other incident where a retail employee has died working on the day after Thanksgiving.

Wal-Mart is working closely with police, company spokesman Dan Fogleman said.

"The safety and security of our customers and associates is our top priority," Fogleman said. "Our thoughts and prayers are with them and their families at this difficult time."

I think all those people that were on the security camera that did this to him should be prosecuted for murder.

I was awake at 3am ...so I went to town for the hell of it....
there was aline 1/2 mile long to get into one of the stores.....
I think I pissed them off when I walked up front and went in.....I told one guy im not in grade school ....phfff on lines!!!!
it pays to be big and wear black leather!!!

thats awesome.

That is ridiculous! I can care less about material things.

I spent 5 yrs at walmart...watching black friday from inside...as they let the animals in...I learned to hate people

I agree with you on this one.. There is so many people that just go nuts shopping the day after thanksgiving..and don't care about things like this just to save a few bucks.. I hope they do prosecute all those people that took part in this tragedy..Keep me updated on what happens ok.. Have a great weekend!

I just don't understand how people can be like that!!!

This is going to become one of the legends of the depression of 2008. It's not even like they were after food to feed thier children, they did this for toys & electronics! This kind of greed & lack of respect for people is what has gotten us where we are today.

RedHen,

I think it's been happening every year for awhile - somebody getting killed or severely injured from the stampede.

holy ass, the human race hits a brand old low...again.....will wonders never cease???

i'm proud to be an animal

Thats New York for you. I went shopping and it was calm. Got what I wanted and left.

yeah, the power was off in new orleans for days, and what did they steal? rrraaaaddiioooSS and ttttvvvvvssss....

Yeah, it's tragic and one of the reasons I quit shopping the day after Thanksgiving. I'm sorry, saving a little money is just not worth it.

The sad thing is, the it most likely was an accident, the people in front are being pushed by the people behind and they can't control it anymore than anyone else can.

The responsibility, IMO, lies with the stores that offer these "deals." They know what the crowds are going to be like and they do NOTHING in the way of extra security, crowd control, etc. Walmart has this problem every year, you'd think they'd learn.

Exactly! I've worked at Walmart during black Friday, and they know.......... They know customers will be rude, and even possibly fighting over merchandise on the shelf. The whole system encourages it. WE have so many of this product but you have to be the first here to get it..............

I think the stores should be held responsible for it.If they are going to have these kinds of sales knowing the crowds, etc., then they should be responsible for making sure it is safe.

By the way, this may be the first time someone was killed, but it isn't the first time someone was injured...............

There were a couple of people killed last year, I believe, though maybe not at Walmart. I don't remember if it was last year or the year before, but there was a shooting at a Best Buy or Circuit City around here, they were fighting over XBox's or Wii or some such other foolish thing.

Do you think people will become less materialistic & look back on this kind of behavior with remorse?

Nope, people won't change. I think it's up the companies to change the way they do business. They rely way too much on a 4 week period to make a profit, it's ridiculous.

I agree partly that the company should be held accountable, but also the idiots who don't give a crap about human life. It also said in the article that they were working trying to save him and people just kept going by trying to get the deals. sickens me.

There's plenty of blame to go around on this one.

The crowd who behaved like stampeding animals carry part of the blame.

Walmart and other stores encourage this type of behavior as well. They heavily promote sales of some real good deals when they know they might have only a few of those items that hundreds of people will show up trying to get that item creating that push to get to and claim the item.

I remember them promoting a flat screen last year in Lansing MI population population 115,518. They had only 4 in the city. People knew there were extremely limited numbers so the race was on.

It's a recipe for disaster.

Entrances are poorly engineered for crowds.

Stores do not want to pay for proper security queuing lines outside the stores either.

I am somewhat surprised this hasn't happened before.