Just over a month after a viral video showed rats on top of produce at a Humble Walmart, new footage suggests the rodents may be back.
A video posted four days ago on the Grizzy’s Hood News Facebook page appears to show another rat crawling across cucumbers inside the Walmart located along North Sam Houston Parkway in Humble.
Reporter Deven Clarke first covered the story last month after Harris County Public Health cited the store and found a dead rat on a glue pad behind a freezer. At that time, inspectors reported Walmart brought in pest control and removed affected produce.
Now, Clarke returned to the store as shoppers expressed frustration and concern over the latest video.
“It’s very upsetting, and they need to take care of it right away,” said shopper Esperanza Salazar.
“You would think after the first time that measures were put in place to protect customers,” added shopper Alysia Gradney. “To see this again is really sad.”
After the newest video surfaced, all produce shelves inside the store were cleared. However, produce items, including cucumbers, were later seen placed in bins next to the empty shelves.
Clarke questioned a store employee about whether the produce came from the same source as the items shown in the video, but the employee could not confirm where the cucumbers originated. A Walmart spokesperson also could not provide sourcing details when contacted.
Instead, Walmart released a statement similar to the one issued after last month’s incident, saying:
“The health and safety of our customers is always a top priority. We worked quickly to remove all potentially impacted products from the store and have deployed additional preventative measures onsite with our vendors.”
Health department response
Harris County Public Health confirmed it once again found evidence of rodent activity at the Humble Walmart. Officials shut down the produce section, discarded food, and issued citations for unsanitary conditions.
Inspectors met with store leadership and pest control experts Tuesday to review corrective actions already taken. A follow-up inspection is scheduled within the next 24 hours, and the open produce cooler remains out of service.
Health officials say site visits will continue until the rodent issue is fully resolved.
Community reaction
Several customers are now calling for the store’s entire grocery section to be shut down until the problem is fully addressed, saying repeated incidents have damaged their trust in the store’s food safety practices.
For food safety concerns in Harris County, residents are encouraged to contact Harris County Public Health at 713-274-6300.