Athlone retailer denies closure was Covid-related

An Athlone shop and filling station has rejected local speculation that its closure was Covid-related.

Following queries from the Westmeath Independent today (Monday), a spokesperson for Applegreen blamed a “site IT issue” for the closure of their forecourt and shop in Arcadia Retail Park from September 30 to October 2.

The computer issue impacted the fuel pumps and in-store tills, they added.

“As a continued effort to make our stores safe for staff and customers, we used the opportunity while the store was closed to do a deep clean of the entire premises. We are continuing to conduct a deep clean programme across all of our sites due to the current pandemic,” the company said.

Applegreen operates over 472 forecourt sites and employs circa 10,700 people across Ireland, UK and America, according to its website.