A manager at a Merseyside Tesco was seen "spraying air freshener" while water from a blocked drain spilled out from under fridges, a customer claims.
Ben Mills travelled from his home in Rochdale to his mum's in St Helens as they went on their weekly shopping trip, opting to go to the Prescot Tesco Extra store so they could visit the cafe. When they arrived at the cafe they couldn't smell anything and were blissfully unaware of the blocked drain causing dirty water to flood aisle floors.
The dad of three and his mum went for a walk round the Cables Shopping Park before going in to do a food shop but said they found staff walking around the store with tissues pressed against their face due to the smell coming from the water, which Tesco confirmed was from a blocked drain. When the 40-year-old questioned whether the shop should be open he claims to have been told they would be closing to new customers imminently.
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As he and his mum walked around the shop he claims customers were still being let in and recorded a video before buying four items of clothing for his children. He told the ECHO: "When we walked in it smelled like a stink bomb had gone off. Staff were walking around with tissues covering their mouths.
"I spoke to the manager who said they were closing and stopping letting people in but they weren't when I was there. When I was leaving they told me they weren't letting people in. The manager and [another] woman were walking round spraying air freshener."
A Tesco spokesman said: “Our maintenance team dealt with a blocked drain today at our Prescot Extra store. All our proper procedures were followed and there was no risk to customer safety.”
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