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Six people have now died and more than 110 have been infected and gotten sick from an outbreak of Legionnaires’ disease in New York City. Legionnaires’ disease is a type of severe pneumonia that, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), kills about 1 out of every 10 people who gets sick with it due to complications from their illness.
Cases of Legionnaires’ disease have typically been concentrated in the northeastern United States in the past. Recently, however, that has been changing as more states in the central part of the country including Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Illinois, and Wisconsin have reported more health cases involving Legionella bacteria.
“In general, reported cases of Legionnaires’ disease have been increasing since the early 2000s,” the CDC reports.
Why the increase in Legionnaires’ disease?
In New York City, the New York Post reports, city officials have said 12 cooling towers, including four on top of city-owned buildings, including Harlem Hospital, tested positive for Legionella since late July. The cooling towers that tested positive were drained and disinfected, but Rev. Al Sharpton and civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who are now suing a construction company that did work in Harlem over the outbreak, claim the cooling towers at the hospital filled with rainwater after several storms, but were left untreated.
Vox reports that “cooling tanks are ideal for Legionella to grow and spread” because “they’re filled with stagnant, warm water that is more hospitable to bacterial growth.” Outdated systems in low-income housing are the most susceptible to the bacteria growing and spreading. Warmer temperatures and high humidity make it easier for bacteria to reproduce in such cooling systems.
Signs and symptoms
The CDC states Legionnaires’ disease symptoms usually develop two to 14 days after exposure to Legionella bacteria, but it can take longer. People can get Legionnaires’ disease by breathing in mist containing the bacteria, but it is usually not spread person to person. It is more likely to be spread by cooling systems that convert stagnant water into cool air spraying mists containing the bacteria, leading to the illness.
Symptoms include cough, fever, headaches, muscle aches, shortness of breath, confusion, diarrhea, and/or nausea. Legionnaires’ disease is typically treated with antibiotics, but can still often require care in a hospital, even for generally healthy people.