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Death Toll Rises to 4 in Legionnaires' Outbreak, Officials Say

By  Aidan Gardiner and Eddie Small | August 3, 2015 9:00am 

THE BRONX — Four people have died and another 71 have been infected in an outbreak of Legionnaires' disease stemming from Bronx air conditioning towers, officials said.

Investigators are still trying to determine the source of the outbreak but have found five buildings that tested positive for the disease, including Lincoln Medical Center and the Opera House Hotel, according to the Department of Health.

Other infected sites were the Concourse Plaza complex, Streamline Plastic Co. and a Verizon office building. The city has so far tested a total of 17 buildings with cooling towers in the area and completed cleanup efforts at all five infected sites.

The disease — which is a kind of pneumonia that spreads when people breathe in bacteria-filled water vapor — has claimed the lives of four people whom "were older adults and had additional underlying medical problems," according to Health officials.

Many of those infected have already been treated and released, officials said. The city’s supply of drinking water remains safe and unaffected by the disease, they added.

"Disease detectives" are scouring the area while officials reach out to residents to spread information, officials said. Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. has called for inspections of city air conditioning systems and water infrastructure in the wake of the outbreak.

Owners of the buildings that tested positive have until Friday to submit plans detailing how they'll maintain cooling towers and prevent future growth of the harmful bacteria, called legionella, officials said.

A town hall meeting for residents to get more information about Legionnaires' disease will be held at the Bronx Museum of the Arts on Monday from 6 to 8 p.m. with city officials, community leaders and medical professionals from the Health Department in attendance.