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5 New Sites Test Positive for Legionnaires' Disease in Bronx, City Says

By Ben Fractenberg | August 12, 2015 8:53pm
 Andy Tse takes a water sample from a cooling tower on the roof of Montefiore Medical Center on Saturday, Aug. 8, 2015.
Andy Tse takes a water sample from a cooling tower on the roof of Montefiore Medical Center on Saturday, Aug. 8, 2015.
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Flickr/governorandrewcuomo

THE BRONX — Five new sites have tested positive for the bacteria that causes Legionnaires’ disease, including St. Barnabas Hospital and the St. Barnabas Rehabilitation and Continuing Care Center, officials said Wednesday.

Three of the new sites were within the impact zone in the South Bronx, bringing the total number of buildings that have tested positive to 20, according to officials.

The new sites within the zone were Chris’ Super Deli at 903 Sheridan Ave., Pyramid Safe Haven at 470 E. 161st St. and Conway Store at 2952-4 Third Avenue.

The cooling towers on the two buildings on the St. Barnabas Hospital campus have been cleaned and may not be related to the outbreak in the South Bronx, according to health officials. 

12 people have died from Legionnaires' disease, and 119 people have contracted illness. There haven’t been any new reported cases of people contracting the illness since Aug. 3.

Building owners within the impact zone are required to clean their cooling towers and the state has offered free testing and cleaning for the bacteria until October.

The city and state are also working on legislation to require all cooling towers to be registered and disinfected quarterly.

Investigators are still determining the initial site of the outbreak.