The June Bug Epidemic
Photo credit: Patrick Coin
Here’s an odd one. The June bug epidemic refers to an incident in summer 1962 when a worker in a textile mill in the USA claimed to have been bitten by some sort of dangerous insect. Convinced that the latest batch of fabric that the mill had received from England was infested with creepy critters, the woman refused to go back to work. She complained of headaches, dizziness, and a painful rash. Before long, more than 50 of her colleagues were also insisting that they had been bitten by the elusive “June bug.”
Understandably, the mill was closed down for inspection, and officials from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) in Atlanta were dispatched to deal with the outbreak. But to their surprise, they could find zero evidence that such a creature even existed. The health inspectors found only two biting insects in the entire plant, neither of which could have caused the symptoms described by the workers.
Despite this dumbfounding discovery, they decided to have the mill sprayed for insects anyway. After all, there was nothing else they could do. But the most incredible part of the story is this: After the mill had been sprayed and reopened, not a single person complained of June bug bites again. Was there really something hiding in the fabric?
Now, I've lived nearly all my life in the South, and I've seen more than my share of June Bugs. That being said, I don't ever recall being bitten by one at any time in my life. What ever it was, I don't think it was a June bug.
Coffee out on the patio again this morning!
10 comments:
The june-bugs I remember were green.
Hey Gorges...
Most of the ones we have here look just like the picture. Don't ever remember any green ones, though.
Thanks for stopping by today!
I've seen both the green and brown bugs that were called June bugs, but have never been bitten by either one.
Hey Mamahen...
Yeah, I'm thinking it must have been something else and not June bugs. But...who really knows?
Thanks for coming over this morning!
June bug? Don't think so. And probably not in the fabric. As for the other workers, suggestion easily ignites the imagination.
They apparently come in several variations, Jim; here's a place where you can see brown and green ones both:
https://www.google.com/search?q=june+bug&client=firefox-b-1&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiQuLSzzvbcAhWE3YMKHeYwCZkQ_AUICigB&biw=1920&bih=966#imgrc=reQHTuYMmEjV7M:
I can remember when I was a kid, seeing them. If I remember correctly, those were brown colored.
Hey Gorges...
Thanks for the links. I appreciate it.
Hey Dizzy...
Yeah, those are the ones I remember from the last time I saw them this year. See them all the time early in the year.
Thanks for the visit today!
Could have been something used to cure the fabric. You just never know what they will use. At one time and maybe still formaldehyde was largely used. I never wear or use anything cloth before I was it.
See you all on the patio and this may be our last nice day for a while back into the triple digits and high humidity.
Hey Jo...
That is more than likely the case. Sounds reasonable to me.
Thanks, dear, for dropping by today!
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