An editorial from the Bluefield Daily Telegraph
BLUEFIELD, W.Va. — The looming loss of Walmart, and the 140 jobs the company provides in McDowell County, is another devastating blow to the region. Further adding to the crisis was last week’s announcement of the planned closure of Kmart at the Claypool Hill Mall in neighboring Tazewell County. Another 50 plus jobs will be lost for the region when Kmart is closed in mid-April.
It seems the hits just keep coming for the deep south coalfield counties. How many more jobs must we lose before the bleeding finally stops? The troubling Walmart and Kmart announcements came just one week after the confirmation from Norfolk Southern that it was consolidating its Pocahontas Division headquarters in Bluefield with its existing offices in Roanoke, Va. Although the railroad is calling the move a consolidation, the unfortunate fact of the matter is that management and office jobs are being lost in Bluefield. Factor in the recent closures of Staples in Bluefield, Va., Sears at the Mercer Mall and the loss of thousands of coal mining jobs across the region and we are looking at a serious regional crisis that will require strong leadership and prompt action to effectively stop the bleeding.