diff --git a/lib/queuePopulator/LogReader.js b/lib/queuePopulator/LogReader.js
index 5ed3982ae..cd0dbeb95 100644
--- a/lib/queuePopulator/LogReader.js
+++ b/lib/queuePopulator/LogReader.js
@@ -148,11 +148,23 @@ class LogReader {
         });
         this.logConsumer.readRecords({ limit: 1 }, (err, res) => {
             if (err) {
-                this.log.error('error while reading log', {
-                    method: 'LogReader._initializeLogOffset',
-                    error: err,
-                });
-                return done(err);
+                // FIXME: getRaftLog metadata route returns 500 when
+                // its cache does not contain the queried raft
+                // session. For the sake of simplicity, in order to
+                // allow the populator to make progress, we choose to
+                // accept errors fetching the current offset during
+                // setup phase and fallback to starting from offset
+                // 1. It would be better to have metadata return
+                // special success statuses in such case.
+                this.log.warn(
+                    'error reading initial log offset, ' +
+                        'default to initial offset 1', {
+                            method: 'LogReader._initializeLogOffset',
+                            zkPath: pathToLogOffset,
+                            logOffset: 1,
+                            error: err,
+                        });
+                return done(null, 1);
             }
             const logOffset = res.info.cseq + 1;
             this.log.info('starting after latest log sequence', {
diff --git a/tests/unit/lib/queuePopulator/LogReader.spec.js b/tests/unit/lib/queuePopulator/LogReader.spec.js
index d93a637f6..d39be2830 100644
--- a/tests/unit/lib/queuePopulator/LogReader.spec.js
+++ b/tests/unit/lib/queuePopulator/LogReader.spec.js
@@ -2,7 +2,7 @@ const assert = require('assert');
 
 const ZookeeperMock = require('zookeeper-mock');
 
-const { versioning } = require('arsenal');
+const { errors, versioning } = require('arsenal');
 const { DbPrefixes } = versioning.VersioningConstants;
 
 const { Logger } = require('werelogs');
@@ -10,13 +10,21 @@ const { Logger } = require('werelogs');
 const LogReader = require('../../../../lib/queuePopulator/LogReader');
 
 class MockLogConsumer {
+    constructor(params) {
+        this.params = params || {};
+    }
+
     readRecords(params, cb) {
         process.nextTick(() => {
-            cb(null, {
-                info: {
-                    cseq: 12345,
-                },
-            });
+            if (this.params.readRecordsError) {
+                cb(this.params.readRecordsError);
+            } else {
+                cb(null, {
+                    info: {
+                        cseq: 12345,
+                    },
+                });
+            }
         });
     }
 }
@@ -78,4 +86,20 @@ describe('LogReader', () => {
             done();
         });
     });
+
+    it('should start from offset 1 on log consumer readRecords error', done => {
+        const errorLogReader = new LogReader({
+            logId: 'test-log-reader',
+            zkClient: zkMock.createClient('localhost:2181'),
+            logConsumer: new MockLogConsumer({
+                readRecordsError: errors.InternalError,
+            }),
+            logger: new Logger('test:ErrorLogReader'),
+        });
+        errorLogReader.setup(err => {
+            assert.ifError(err);
+            assert.strictEqual(errorLogReader.logOffset, 1);
+            done();
+        });
+    });
 });