WASHINGTON — Sen. Strom Thurmond collapsed Saturday at a restaurant in suburban Alexandria, Va., and has been hospitalized.
The 97-year-old South Carolina Republican, the oldest person ever to serve in the Senate, was first taken to Inova Alexandria Hospital, and later transported to Walter Reed Army Medical Center, Inova spokeswoman Rita Wakefield said.
Thurmond was in fair condition, Wakefield said.
The nature of his problem was not disclosed, but Thurmond has been hospitalized several times in recent years for various problems, including fatigue. He had prostate surgery in 1999.
An Alexandria Fire Department spokeswoman, Sandy Flynn, said Thurmond was taken by ambulance from a downtown restaurant to the hospital Saturday afternoon.
A Washington television station reported that Thurmond was stricken while dining with two friends. During the meal, the senator had a glazed look, then lowered his head to the table and said he needed to sleep, WRC-TV said.
Christopher Swift, manager at the Southside 815 restaurant, said Thurmond and the other men came in for lunch. "He really looked tired," Swift said. "Basically as a precautionary measure, the two gentlemen with him asked us to call an ambulance."
The ambulance responded to a 911 call.
Thurmond, the longest-serving senator and oldest member of Congress, was first elected to the Senate in 1954. When he was re-elected to his eighth Senate term in November 1996, Thurmond said it would be his last campaign.
He was always proud of his health, even into his upper 90s. But starting in 1999, a succession of hospital visits called that into question.