Montgomery County Alcohol Beverage Services’ Employee Tests Positive for Coronavirus, Hampden Lane Liquor & Wine Store Temporarily Closed

For Immediate Release: Friday, March 27, 2020

Alcohol Beverage Services (ABS) announced today that the Hampden Lane Liquor & Wine store in Bethesda is temporarily closed after a County employee tested positive for the Coronavirus (COVID-19). The employee was not feeling well on Wednesday, March 25, and was sent home. The employee subsequently tested positive for the virus.

According to public health officials, anyone who has visited Hampden Lane Liquor & Wine, 4920 Hampden Lane in Bethesda on March 23 or 24 is advised to monitor their temperature and watch for respiratory symptoms. If you have a temperature of 100.4 degrees or higher, or respiratory symptoms such as shortness of breath, contact your health care provider.

Maryland Governor Larry Hogan’s order has deemed liquor stores as essential services as a part of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) health emergency and we will strive to keep them open while making the safety of our employees and customers our top priority.

“The safety of our customers and employees is very important to us,” said Kent Massie, Chief of Retail for ABS. “We are temporarily closing the store to thoroughly disinfect it and have asked all our staff who have come into contact with this employee to voluntarily self-quarantine and monitor for fever and respiratory symptoms.”

ABS has temporarily closed the Hampden Lane store for sanitizing and deep cleaning which will take place Saturday morning. In addition, ABS retail stores have already begun installing plexiglass to create a barrier between consumers and staff at the register, staff is frequently disinfecting surfaces and is encouraging social distancing of at least six feet. Signage reminding customers to engage in social distancing was posted in each store last week.

ABS, the alcohol wholesaler of beer, wine, and spirits for Montgomery County, operates 25 beer, wine and spirits stores and manages alcohol licensing and enforcement on behalf of the Montgomery County Board of License Commissioners. Generating more than $35 million annually, ABS profits are used to pay off County debt and a large portion is deposited in the County general fund to pay for services that otherwise would be paid for with tax dollars.

For information about ABS, including store hours and locations visit the website and follow ABS on Facebook and Twitter.

For the latest COVID-19 updates, visit the County’s COVID-19 website and follow Montgomery County on Facebook and Twitter.

# # #

Media contacts: Julie Parker, julie.parker@montgomerycountymd.gov;

Melissa Davis, Melissa.Davis2@Montgomerycountymd.gov

Release ID: 20-138
Media Contact: Julie Parker 240-777-6507