In 1964, there was an outbreak of

typhoid Typhoid fever, also known as typhoid, is a disease caused by ''Salmonella'' serotype Typhi bacteria. Symptoms vary from mild to severe, and usually begin six to 30 days after exposure. Often there is a gradual onset of a high fever over several d ...

in the city of

Aberdeen Aberdeen (; sco, Aiberdeen ; gd, Obar Dheathain ; la, Aberdonia) is a city in North East Scotland, and is the third most populous city in the country. Aberdeen is one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas (as Aberdeen City), and ...

, Scotland. The first two cases were identified on 20 May 1964; eventually over 400 cases were diagnosed and the patients were quarantined at the City Hospital in Urquhart Road, Woodend Hospital in Eday Road, and Tor-na-Dee Hospital in

Milltimber Milltimber is a suburb of Aberdeen, Scotland, around west of Aberdeen city centre. From 1854 to 1937 the area was served by Milltimber railway station on the Aberdeen suburban railway. Along with the nearby settlements of Cults and Bieldside ...

which was used as an overflow hospital for typhoid cases. There were three deaths connected with the outbreak. Dr Ian MacQueen, the

Medical Officer of Health A medical officer of health, also known as a medical health officer, chief health officer, chief public health officer or district medical officer, is the title commonly used for the senior government official of a health department, usually at a m ...

for Aberdeen, became well known in the media for his twice-daily briefings. The outbreak was eventually traced to contaminated tinned corned beef from Rosario,

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

and sold in the city's branch of the Scottish grocery chain William Low. Pollution from the waters of the

Uruguay River The Uruguay River ( es, Río Uruguay, ; pt, Rio Uruguai, ) is a major river in South America. It flows from north to south and forms parts of the boundaries of Brazil, Argentina, and Uruguay, separating some of the Argentine provinces of La M ...

(which flows into the

Río de la Plata The Río de la Plata (, "river of silver"), also called the River Plate or La Plata River in English, is the estuary formed by the confluence of the Uruguay River and the Paraná River at Punta Gorda. It empties into the Atlantic Ocean and fo ...

) appeared to be the source of the contamination, probably through water entering a defective tin through a small puncture. The infected meat then contaminated a meat slicing machine within the William Low shop, leading to the spread of the disease. The bacteria multiplied further in the meats as they were placed near a window and exposed to sunlight.

Aftermath

The reputation of Aberdeen as a safe city to visit, live and work in was briefly harmed by the media coverage of the outbreak. In July 1964, following the end of the outbreak,

The Queen In the English-speaking world, The Queen most commonly refers to: * Elizabeth II (1926–2022), Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 1952 until her death The Queen may also refer to: * Camilla, Queen Consort (born 1947), ...

made a high-profile visit to boost morale and to help rehabilitate the city's reputation. An official enquiry and report into the outbreak was commissioned by the Secretary of State for Scotland. The enquiry was headed by Sir David Milne and his published findings became known as the Milne Report. The reputation of William Low was irrevocably damaged within Aberdeen and the city's store, the source of the outbreak, closed for good three years later. Dundee-based company William Low subsequently opened many other stores around Scotland, but remained absent from Aberdeen. William Low was eventually taken over by

Tesco Tesco plc () is a British multinational groceries and general merchandise retailer headquartered in Welwyn Garden City, England. In 2011 it was the third-largest retailer in the world measured by gross revenues and the ninth-largest in th ...

in 1994. Public perceptions of the safety of

Fray Bentos Fray Bentos () is the capital city of the Río Negro Department, in south-western Uruguay, at the Argentina-Uruguay border, near the Argentine city of Gualeguaychú. Its port on the Uruguay River is one of the nation's most important harbours. ...

tinned meats also contributed to significantly diminished income. The outbreak was successfully handled, although there were three fatalities confirmed. The outbreak drew attention to the need for better standards of hygiene, notably in the cleaning of food processing machinery. The

University of Aberdeen , mottoeng = The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom , established = , type = Public research universityAncient university , endowment = £58.4 million (2021) , budget ...

went on to develop an international reputation in the field of disease control, notably in the appointment of Professor Hugh Pennington to the post of Professor of Bacteriology from 1979 until his retirement in 2003.

References

The Little History of Aberdeenshire by Duncan Harley (Ch10 - Health Matters)

External links

Typhoid left city 'under siege', BBC news, 2008

50th anniversary of the outbreak, BBC news, 2014

History of the typhoid outbreak of 1964, University of Aberdeen

Parliamentary reports (Hansard), House of Commons, 29 July 1964

The 1964 Aberdeen Typhoid Epidemic -Part One, Aberdeen Voice, 23 May 2014
{{DEFAULTSORT:1964 Aberdeen Typhoid Outbreak Food safety scandals Food safety in the United Kingdom Aberdeen Typhoid Outbreak Typhoid fever 1960s in Aberdeen 1964 disease outbreaks Disease outbreaks in Scotland Aberdeen Typhoid Outbreak Aberdeen Typhoid Outbreak Aberdeen Typhoid Outbreak Beef

Aftermath

See also

References

External links