BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) – A complaint led Oregon’s workplace safety agency to investigate the August 2022 shooting at the east Bend Safeway, where a gunman fired numerous shots and killed a worker and customer, then killed himself as police approached. The investigation led to Safeway being fined $7,250 for two violations.

Authorities said the gunman fired at least 100 shots before and after entering the store, killing customer Glenn Bennett, 84, and later killing produce department employee Donald Surrett Jr., 66, who had hidden, then confronted the gunman with a produce knife.

A confidential complaint was filed in September with the Oregon Occupational Safety and Health Agency (Oregon OSHA), which led to the investigation and the agency’s Jan. 11 notice of penalty to Safeway Inc. about what it found at the store on NE Highway 20. It provided a copy of a 212-page report that included numerous interviews with employees and others, and background such as safety meeting notes and the emergency plan.

The majority of the fine, $6,500, was levied for obstruction of access to exit routes, as OSHA said it found the company “did not ensure that all exit routes located in the rear section of the store were clear of obstructions that could prohibit or delay an employee’s ability to egress from the building.”

Never Block an Emergency Exit,