# Life imitates art: Weekend at McDonalds, complete with dead woman at counter **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [July 28, 2012, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-imitates-art-weekend-at-mcdonalds-complete-with-dead-woman-at-counter/629680 "2012-07-28T15:20:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2012, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-imitates-art-weekend-at-mcdonalds-complete-with-dead-woman-at-counter/629680/1 "2012-07-28T15:20:20Z")
[Story here](http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2179366/Staff-McDonalds-Croatia-accused-selling-burgers-customer-drops-dead-counter.html?ito=feeds-newsxml) > [@](#): > > Staff at a McDonald’s in Croatia allegedly carried on selling burgers despite the fact a customer had dropped dead in front of the counter. After efforts to revive her failed, the woman was instead propped up in the corner of the restaurant and had a napkin placed over her head as workers continued to serve other customers, it has been claimed. ---
**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2012, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-imitates-art-weekend-at-mcdonalds-complete-with-dead-woman-at-counter/629680/2 "2012-07-28T16:44:53Z")
I read the article and it said that the restaurant in question claims that media reports were exaggerated, and “Only the drive thru remained open.” Heck, that’s bad enough. I’d expect a place to be closed completely, out of respect, until the woman’s body was moved. ---
**Author:** ![boytyperanma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4491bb/32.png) [@boytyperanma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/boytyperanma)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2012, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-imitates-art-weekend-at-mcdonalds-complete-with-dead-woman-at-counter/629680/3 "2012-07-28T17:11:05Z")
I heard this one on the radio. The authorities were notified immediately after she died. They didn’t remove the body from the restaurant for 90 minutes. If that was the normal response time in the US, I’d expect plenty of similar stories. This was during the morning rush. I think it’s a bit unfair to expect a business to close down entirely out of respect. Propping her up in a corner and covering her with a napkin would be a bit out of line. I’m more inclined to believe they closed the dinning room and continued to serve at the drive through. The seems a reasonable comprise to me. ---
**Author:** ![billfish678](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@billfish678](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billfish678)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2012, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-imitates-art-weekend-at-mcdonalds-complete-with-dead-woman-at-counter/629680/4 "2012-07-28T17:18:31Z")
> [@boytyperanma](#): > > This was during the morning rush. I think it’s a bit unfair to expect a business to close down entirely out of respect. Propping her up in a corner and covering her with a napkin would be a bit out of line. . Thats disgusting. A napkin?! WTF? the animals should have covered her head with a to go bag. ---
**Author:** ![carlotta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/898d66/32.png) [@carlotta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carlotta)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2012, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-imitates-art-weekend-at-mcdonalds-complete-with-dead-woman-at-counter/629680/5 "2012-07-28T18:17:36Z")
It’s often hard to know what to do when reality suddenly veers away from its regular course. My observation is that in general people keep doing what they usually do. I waited tables for a few years in a fancy restaurant. I remember a woman who had a stroke and a man who had a heart attack (not at the same time!) While these situations were being dealt with by management and emergency people the rest of us kept serving our tables and the diners kept eating. There was a low level buzz of “what should we do???” I remember being in a grocery store when the fire alarms started blaring. Everyone looked around at each other confusedly and then went back to shopping and paying for groceries. ---
**Author:** ![listedmia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e0b2c6/32.png) [@listedmia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/listedmia)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2012, 9:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-imitates-art-weekend-at-mcdonalds-complete-with-dead-woman-at-counter/629680/6 "2012-07-30T09:01:01Z")
I was attempting to eat at a McDonalds once on foot, but they told us that only the drive thru was open. We walked to the White Castle up the street and ate our food outside while watching the roof of the McDonalds catch fire. Apparently, they were keeping the drive thru window open while the inside was filling up with smoke. ---
**Author:** ![Kenm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/bc79bd/32.png) [@Kenm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kenm)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2012, 12:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-imitates-art-weekend-at-mcdonalds-complete-with-dead-woman-at-counter/629680/7 "2012-07-30T12:16:53Z")
Good for the Daily [del]Outrage[/del] Mail running pix, for those who don’t know what McDonald’s looks like, of the arches and “Drive-Thru” in quasi-English, not Croat. The counter pic is especially helpful. ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2012, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-imitates-art-weekend-at-mcdonalds-complete-with-dead-woman-at-counter/629680/8 "2012-07-30T15:12:10Z")
> [@billfish678](#): > > the animals should have covered her head with a to go bag. Had it been Burger King, they could have given her one of those crowns. ---
**Author:** ![billfish678](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@billfish678](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billfish678)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2012, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-imitates-art-weekend-at-mcdonalds-complete-with-dead-woman-at-counter/629680/9 "2012-07-30T15:22:08Z")
> [@Tom\_Tildrum](#): > > Had it been Burger King, they could have given her one of those crowns. Or how about a mask of that creepy assed “Burger King”? That should ward of any evil spirits trying to steal her soul till St Peter can get there.