Poisoning at Harvard: 6 lab workers sickened by coffee

The six victims - a group of scientists and students at Harvard Medical School - used a communal, single-serve coffee machine on the eighth floor near their pathology lab Aug. 26, according to an internal memo. Seconds later all six reported symptoms such as dizziness and low blood pressure. One victim’s ears were ringing and another passed out.

All six were taken to Beth Isreal Deaconess Medical Center, where they were treated and released. One was held overnight for observation. The coffee maker was removed for testing, a Harvard spokesman told the Herald.

Harvard University Police, as well as Boston police and fire units, responded to the poisoning, and immediate testing by hazardous material crews found no traces of poison. But a later test revealed that the presence of sodium azide, a common preservative used in labs, is what sickened the researchers, an internal Harvard memo released Friday reads.

Sodium azide is listed as a “potentially deadly chemical that exists as an odorless white solid” by the federal government.

“While we do not yet know how the incident occurred, we have recently learned that sodium azide . . . was present in the coffee consumed by the six employees,” the Friday memo reads. “As the investigation continues, we are being prudent and taking additional precautionary measures to ensure the well-being of our community.”