National Guard soldiers defending the US Capitol became ill after eating meat that is almost entirely raw – with scraped metal also found in disgusting meals, according to whistleblowers.
An anonymous Michigan National Guard sergeant told WXYZ that the force has complained repeatedly after more than a dozen soldiers fell ill because of undercooked meat.
“Yesterday, for example, there were 74 different meals found with raw meat,” the sergeant told the station on Monday, sharing images of meat that looked completely raw in the middle.
“Yesterday … the soldiers found metal chips in the food,” he said.
Undercooked meals that are “good from the start” have become “even more dangerous” by a delay of up to four hours before being served, he said.
Despite their pivotal role in defending the Capitol against feared domestic terrorist plans, the troops were also being terribly underfed, the sergeant complained.
A typical breakfast was “maybe a Dane and some kind of juice”, while sometimes it was “clearly a sweet roll and SunnyD,” said the sergeant.
Another soldier complained last month that “Several soldiers became sick and vomiting after eating,” noted the Detroit News.
“Morale is very bad; many served abroad and cannot believe in the quality of the food that is being fed here ”, complained the soldier.
Michigan National Guard – which has almost 1,000 soldiers still on Capitol Hill – released a statement Monday calling the reports “very worrying” and “unacceptable”, and said he was dealing with the contractor involved.
“The health and well-being of Michigan National Guard service members is critical to their success as they continue to serve missions in the United States and around the world,” the statement said.
Governor Gretchen Whitmer’s office told local media that she had addressed the problem last month and was assured that it had been corrected.
All 14 members of the House of Michigan delegation signed a letter on Tuesday asking the National Guard to cancel the food service contract and find another supplier.
“It is totally unacceptable that our men and women who serve in Washington, DC, are being hospitalized because of the food they are receiving,” wrote the lawmakers.
Michigan troops make up about 20% of the 5,200 guard soldiers and airmen who support civil law enforcement on Capitol Hill, noted the Detroit News, with its deployment scheduled to end on March 12.
Wired Poles