Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1945-12-09
200 Employees
0f.Store Suffer
Food Poisoning
Samples Taken From
Workers Cafeteria
To Determine Cause
Pictures on Page B-1; List OF
Victims on Page A-6.)


More than 200 employees of the
Woodward g. Lothrop Depart
ment Store were stricken with
food poisoning after eating in
the stores employees cafeterias
yesterday. More than half Of
them were treated at the stores
medical department and of these
II were taken to hospitals in am
balances, police scout cars and
fire rescue squad ambulances.
Police gave first aid to five
persons.
Almost 100 employees who COM
planned of illness but did not re-
quire medical attention, were all
lowed to 60 home.
Nearly 1000 persons massed on
Tenth street in front of st. Patrick's
Church to watch as the victims were
brought from the stores shipping
entrance on stretchers for removal
to hospitals.
Samples of Food Taken.
Health Department officials and
representatives of the Pure Food
and Drug Administration entered
the case and took samples of the
foods served in two employees cafe
terias. Psychologists were testing
the food last night but said no re-
suits would be announced for "a
hours.
James w. Harley, store advertis-
ing manager, said that no victims
had been reported among custom
ers of the tea room patronized by
the public.
The first case of illness was re-
ported about pm. and from that
time on until pm. employees seized
by illness damned the store medical
department until they could be
treated and removed.
20 Persons Sent Home.
BY 10 pm. hospitals reported they
had sent about 20 persons home,
with the remainder either admitted
as patients or continuing under OBJ
Servation.
Ambulances from Freedman's,
Emergency, Casualty and Gallinger
Hospitals and one from Silver
Spring were used to remove the
largest number of victims. Fifteen
police vehicles, including Is scout
cars and two patrol wagons con-
verified for emergency use, plus Nos.
l, Q and 3 fire rescue squad ambu-
lances also were used.
Police were notified of the OUT
break by store officials at Ais pm.
and they alerted hospitals. Police
and ambulance sirens in the down.
town area led to runors there had
been an explosion" and that many
persons had been hurt.
Officials Suspect Meat.
While there was no official report
to indicate what food was to blame,
store officials said they suspected
that smoked tongue served for
luncheon between II am. and 3
pm. was responsible.
Many victims also said they sus-
pected the tongue, which one de-
scribed as "a funny kind of reddish
color"
Miss Alva Tyler, supervisor of
food at the store. told newspaper
men the employees menu consisted
OF smoked tongue, string beans, corn
choWder, potatoes, apple pie and ice
cream.
Two Groups of Cooks.
She made it clear there were tive
separate groups of cooks in the
store-one for the public tea room
and one for the employees cafe
terias. White employees are served
on the eighth floor and colored en-
ployes on the sixth floor.
Approximately 1900 store en-
ployes were served lunch yesterday,
Mr.. Hardey said.
Tea room and cafeteria food are
kept separate, Miss Tyler said, and
menus are completely different
Doctors Called.
AS more and more employees be-
came i'll, store officials called in
three physicians, DR.. j. Lawn
Thompson, DR.. H. Franklin Kreuz-
berg and DR.. Maurice Mensh, prl-
vate practitioners, who directed
treatment in the stores medical de-
partment.
Two of the stores three nurses
were on duty when the outbreak first
was noticed, and the third nurse
came on duty about 4 pm. Many
persons became Ill in rest rooms and
had to be helped to the medical de-
partment
AS employees were carried out OF
(See POISONING, Page A-6.)
h>,Il II