Raccoon In Sam's Club Prompts Evacuation, Shutdown: Reports

GAITHERSBURG, MD — An impromptu visit by a faux shopper caused a Sam’s Club store in Gaithersburg to be shut down Friday morning after a raccoon ran inside. The animal entered the store at 610 N. Frederick Ave. and could not be found, NBC Washington reported.

Officials evacuated customers and employees, and the store was closed until 4 p.m. so the search for the raccoon could proceed.

“It was loose during business hours, so we evacuated the club,” a corporate spokesman for the store told The Washington Post in an email. “We worked with a third-party pest management company to ensure the animal was no longer inside."

The raccoon was spotted in the store's bakery shortly before 7 a.m., the paper said.