Mom of teen who baked to death in Walmart oven describes sick scene: ‘I opened the door and she was there’
The mother of a teenager who died in a Walmart oven has shared chilling details about her daughter’s death, describing the scene as unrecognizable.
Mandip Kaur, who worked alongside her daughter Gursimran at the Halifax, Nova Scotia, Walmart, discovered the 19-year-old on October 19, 2024, when she was unable to locate her during a shift in the store’s bakery.
“I opened the door and she was there,” Mandip said. “I couldn’t handle it. I stayed on the floor with her for five or ten minutes. I didn’t understand what had happened.”
The mother recounted seeing a black-brown liquid, similar to tar, coming from the commercial walk-in oven, which can reach temperatures up to 400 degrees Fahrenheit and is typically used for baking frozen bread. Gursimran’s body, found near the baking racks, was badly burned, with the fluid reportedly coming from her body.
The Halifax Walmart remained closed for four months following the incident. Outside the store, people tied floral tributes to a lamp post in memory of Gursimran. When the store reopened, the bakery section was relocated, and the large walk-in ovens were replaced with smaller models that employees cannot enter. It is unclear whether any larger ovens remain in areas out of public view.
Initially, Halifax police treated the death as a potential homicide. However, one month later, authorities concluded that there was no evidence of foul play.
In February 2026, Nova Scotia’s Department of Labor, Skills and Immigration released findings stating that Walmart had not violated workplace safety regulations and that the oven involved was functioning properly. Greg Hanna, the department’s Director of Communications, confirmed that the oven could be opened from the inside and that there was no indication that safety law violations contributed to Gursimran’s death.
These conclusions have raised speculation that the teenager may have taken her own life. Mandip Kaur strongly rejects this theory, insisting her daughter was happy and ambitious. Gursimran had been valedictorian of her class and had plans to study medicine to become a doctor.
“She loved her family, she was happy,” Mandip said, recalling that they had spent the night before the tragedy laughing and celebrating with loved ones. The mother also noted that a package Gursimran had ordered for herself arrived after her death, further suggesting she had no intentions of harming herself.
Mandip described her daughter as a typical teenager with interests in music, makeup, and fashion, who shared a close bond with her 12-year-old brother.
The lack of clear answers has intensified the family’s grief. “After 18 months of investigation, they couldn’t discover what happened,” Mandip said. “There’s no proof, no solid results. We are not satisfied.”
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