State Dept. Extends Smoking Ban
08/14/02
WASHINGTON –– Smoke-free for nine years, the State Department is making two entrances to its Harry S. Truman building off-limits as well.
Smokers have been restricted to open courtyards or compelled to leave the building to take a puff or two. That sometimes means a dozen or so smokers congregate at the C and D street entrances.
At the same time, people visiting the State Department are going through an often slow security process, lined up within inhaling distance of the smokers.
Research shows that nonsmokers with allergies or heart and lung diseases can have severe reactions when exposed to even small amounts of smoke, the department said in a notice Wednesday. As a result, smoking is being banned within 25 feet of the two entrances.
Security guards will "remind" smokers who don't comply, the notice said.
Cigarettes
