Two People have died from Legionnaires outbreak in New York

"Two people have died in a Legionnaires' disease outbreak in New York. Thirty-one cases of the flu-like disease have been reported since mid-July in the South Bronx, the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene said."

"Symptoms of the disease include fever, chills and a cough. Most people recover, but between 5% to 30% of those who get the disease die, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control.

"We are conducting a swift investigation to determine the source of the outbreak and prevent future cases. I urge anyone with symptoms to seek medical attention right away," said Dr. Mary Bassett, commissioner of the New York City health department.

Hopefully they quickly isolate and find the souce before there are more deaths.

a reply to: tRiP2BrAiN
They need to track down the source. It is most likely an air conditioning cooling tower. The high ambient temperatures promote growth of legionella bacteria in untreated or poorly treated systems.

a reply to: butcherguy

The bad thing is so far they have not been able to isolate the source and NY just had another outbreak in the Bronx back in December and January. Twelve people were diagnosed with the disease. So it seems like it is becoming more frequent. But I am not sure on the stats of how often the outbreaks occur.

originally posted by: tRiP2BrAiN
a reply to: butcherguy

The bad thing is so far they have not been able to isolate the source and NY just had another outbreak in the Bronx back in December and January. Twelve people were diagnosed with the disease. So it seems like it is becoming more frequent. But I am not sure on the stats of how often the outbreaks occur.

It can be tough to find the source, with so many rooftop cooling towers present. The aerosol created by them can drift for a long way until it reaches a person on the street that inhales it.
I would think that NYC would have regulations regarding the treatment of systems with a biocide to kill the bacteria, but enforcement is another story.

a reply to: butcherguy

Thanks for the info And yes you would think there would be regulations.

I was wondering about stats and they have now released the numbers, an estimated 8,000 to 18,000 hospitalized cases of Legionnaires' disease occurs each year in the United States. More than I would have guessed. But the last deaths were in Chicago, 2 died in 2012.

a reply to: tRiP2BrAiN

The people in the bronx that contracted it - were they living in a close vicinity to each other? Or spread out?

a reply to: Macenroe82

It has been in the South Bronx area, but I am not sure if it is all the cases. The last time they had a outbreak there it was attributed to the cooling towers just as butcherguy mentioned can be the source.

a reply to: Macenroe82

Back in Jnuary there 8 of the 12 cases in the borough have been diagnosed among residents of the Co-Op City complex by the New York City Health Department. But they never found the source for the other four. Now this outbreak is larger and has had 2 deaths so far. They have not said that they know the source of the current one yet.

originally posted by: Macenroe82
a reply to: tRiP2BrAiN

The people in the bronx that contracted it - were they living in a close vicinity to each other? Or spread out?

An incident in France showed that the aerosol traveled up to 3.7 miles to infect people. That covers a lot of people in an urban area like NYC.

French researchers found that Legionella bacteria travelled up to 6 kilometres (3.7 mi) through the air from a large contaminated cooling tower at a petrochemical plant in Pas-de-Calais, France. That outbreak killed 21 of the 86 people who had a laboratory-confirmed infection.

Wikipedia: Cooling Towers

a reply to: butcherguy

Thanks for the intel, it sounds like things could potentially get a lot worse.

I'm not very educated on things like this,

Does anyone know how serious this is?

My dad is going to NY (near Niagra) for a few weeks soon for some training.... Should I be worried about him? Or should I just recommend what he always does: wash your hands frequently and stay out of peoples faces.

-Alee.

a reply to: NerdGoddess

NerdGoddess, I would not worry too much. IT is effecting more the residents than the visitors because of the sources of the outbreak. (of course I can not guarantee he wont get it, but the chances are very low). It can not be spread person to person. The good thing is the city and health officials are scrabling trying to get it under control.

Below is a little more info:
Symptoms of Legionnaire's disease, a type of pneumonia, include headache, fatigue, loss of appetite, confusion and diarrhea. Symptoms appear between 2 to 10 days after exposure to Legionella bacteria.

Legionnaire's disease can usually be traced to warm water sources, which are favorable to Legionella growth, such as cooling towers, hot water tanks, whirlpool spas, hot tubs, humidifiers and condensers in large air conditioning systems. It is not spread from person to person.

a reply to: tRiP2BrAiN

tRiP2BrAiN,

Thank you so much for that information, I really appreciate it!

-Alee

a reply to: NerdGoddess

Anytime. The good thing is your dad is not going for a few weeks and both the city officials and health officials are working hard at stopping it. If it gets worse before then i will let you know.

a reply to: butcherguy

Even if there are regs and inspections, some bugs are just darn pernicious once they get into a system.

Even if everyone tries to keep things disinfected, all it takes is just one slightly lackadaisical cleaning and the problem will crop up again later on even though a system might initially test clean.

a reply to: tRiP2BrAiN

Do you have a link where you got the quotes?

a reply to: Staroth

The last quote: "Symptoms of Legionnaire's disease, a type of pneumonia" "Symptoms"

The first quote: "Two people have died in a Legionnaires' disease outbreak in New York" "Two people"

Just click on the highlighted word and it will take you to the web page. I should have included it earlier.

a reply to: tRiP2BrAiN

***Update***
Now there have been four deaths.

Here is the story:A 4rth person died in NY from Legionnaires

"A fourth person has died in what the New York City Health Department is describing as an "unusual" spike in Legionnaires' disease in the Bronx, officials said Saturday. The news comes as two more Bronx buildings tested positive for the legionella bacteria.
A Verizon office building at 117 E. 167th St. is the fourth location to test positive, according to Verizon spokesman John Bonomo. Streamline Plastic Co. at 2590 Park Ave. is the fifth location to test positive. Remediation is complete at the Verizon location and has begun at the plastic company, officials said. Verizon said that it is performing checks on all cooling systems at all its facilities in the Bronx."

a reply to: NerdGoddess

***Update, it is now up to seven dead.

Here is the most recent story: NY Update

a reply to: tRiP2BrAiN

O.o

I'll pass that along thanks

-Alee