Can’t Believe What You’re Hearing

(I work in a large discount home-ware warehouse store. It’s just after ten am. The store opened at nine; I started at ten. A customer has come to me.)

Customer: “There’s been an accident in the china section.”

Me: “Oh, no. Could you show me where?”

(He takes me to a section where shelves had collapsed, spilling china all over the concrete floor. Shards are everywhere.)

Me: “Oh, was anyone hurt?”

Customer: “No, I just found it like that. I came around the corner and almost trod on the broken plates.”

Me: “It’s funny that I didn’t hear it. That sort of crash would have been heard all over the store.”

(I block off the area and go to find the manager and to bring back cleaning equipment.)

Me: *to coworkers* “Have you seen [Store Manager]? There’s been a big shelf collapse in the china department.”

Coworker #1: “He’s not in yet. Strange that we didn’t hear anything.”

Me: “Yeah, may have happened overnight.”

Department Manager: “Oh, was that what we heard this morning?”

Me: “You heard it? When?”

Department Manager: “About 8.30.”

Me:  “And you didn’t go to check?”

Department Manager: “No, not my job. [Coworker] could do it”

(That coworker had the day off. It’s lucky that no one was in the area at the time, because they wouldn’t have been found until after I got in, and lucky that no customers walked on it!)