May 19, 2022 zacherlaw 0 Comments

Three Confirmed Cases of Legionnaires’ Disease in Parsippany Hotel

            Following the diagnosis of Legionnaires’ Disease in three guests who stayed at the Hilton/Hampton Inn Parsippany Hotel last year, the New Jersey Department of Health in coordination with the Parsippany-Troy Hills Health and Human Services Department has now opened an investigation. The guests visited the hotel, located at 1 Hilton Ct. between July 2021 and October 2021. The individuals range in age from 52 to 77 and have since recovered.             After the second case was identified in February 2022, the Department in coordination with the Parsippany-Troy Hills Health and Human Services Department began an outbreak investigation that instructed…

READ MORE
April 10, 2022 zacherlaw 0 Comments

Legionella Bacteria found in five Illinois prisons

On March 11, the Illinois Department of Corrections (IDOC) and the Illinois Department of Public Health released a joint press release announcing that Legionella bacteria had been detected in two Illinois prisons-Stateville Correctional Center and Joliet Treatment Center. However, an IDOC spokesperson has now confirmed that the actual number of prisons with confirmed Legionella in the water supply is five. Legionella was also found in Graham Correctional Center, Kewanee Life Skills Re-Entry Center, and Stateville Northern Reception and Classification Center.  Legionella is the bacteria that causes Legionnaires’ disease, a potentially fatal type of pneumonia. Legionella bacteria primarily moves from water…

READ MORE
March 14, 2022 zacherlaw 0 Comments

Legionnaires’ Disease Cases Rise in the Coachella Valley

There have been 20 confirmed cases of Legionnaires’ disease in the Coachella Valley between the fall of 2021 and early 2022. 14 of the 20 reported Legionnaires’ disease cases required hospitalization and two resulted in death. The source of the increase in cases remains unknown. County health officials are working with the California Department of Public Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Dr. Geoffrey Leung, a Riverside County Public Health, warned residents in the affected areas to seek medical attention if they experience pneumonia-like symptoms. Despite this warning, Dr. Leung stated that the risk to the…

READ MORE
January 25, 2022 zacherlaw 0 Comments

Potential Legionnaires’ Disease Outbreak at Missouri Hospital

The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS) is investigating a potential outbreak of Legionnaire’s disease at Phelphs Hospital in Rolla, Missouri. Four cases have been identified among previously hospitalized patients. The DHSS issued a warning to healthcare providers and anyone in the public who may have been in contact with a water source at the hospital. While the DHSS is investigating the outbreak, Phelps Health is monitoring and testing its water system and providing patients with information on Legionnaire’s disease. To read more about the potential outbreak in Missouri, click here. For more information on Legionnaires’ disease, check out…

READ MORE
November 8, 2021 zacherlaw 0 Comments

Legionella Bacteria Found at Fort Sam Houston Barracks

Staff at Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston (JBSA) in San Antonio, Texas, discovered Legionella bacteria during routine water testing. More than 80 residents and staff at Liberty Barracks are being relocated to other barracks and dorms across the base. There are no reported cases of Legionnaires’ disease so far. The relocated service members are from the Brooke Army Medical Center’s Soldier Recovery Unit. This unit includes the Behavioral Health Clinic. The building will be treated and retested after 72 hours. JBSA’s early discovery of the bacteria, before any reported cases, highlights the importance of routine testing for Legionella bacteria. To read more about…

READ MORE
November 5, 2021 zacherlaw 0 Comments

Confirmed Case of Legionnaires’ Disease at Missouri Mental Health Facility

A patient at Southeast Missouri Mental Health Center has tested positive for Legionnaires’ disease. The 66-year-old patient was transported to a hospital and is in stable condition. The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services began extensive testing of the water systems at the Farmington, Missouri, facility. The Department is also assisting the facility in implementing Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines. After a deadly outbreak of Legionnaires’ disease at a veterans home in the neighboring state of Illinois, health department officials in Missouri tightened reporting requirements for Legionnaires’ disease in the state. Facilities must report evidence of…

READ MORE
September 8, 2021 zacherlaw 0 Comments

Two Individuals are Infected With Legionnaires Disease After A Cruise Onboard The Carnival Horizon

Cruise ship passengers have more to worry about than COVID-19 on cruise ships. Carnival Cruise lines recently sent a letter that informed their guests that two cases of Legionnaires disease occurred among passengers. The two cases occurred in July and August 2021. Carnival Cruise Line is working with the CDC to investigate this potential outbreak. The ship had not been used since March of last year. Stagnant water increases the risk of Legionella transmission as it creates favorable conditions for Legionella growth. The cruise line has begun substantial mitigation measures on board the ship in question. This includes testing all…

READ MORE
November 13, 2018 zacherlaw 0 Comments

English v US Approach to Legionella Control

As previously reported in a blog posted October 12, 2018, the US approach to controlling legionella is different from the United Kingdom. The UK approach is national in nature and very strict. Two recent examples include a leisure center in Walton-on-the-Naze being criminally prosecuted by the Health and Safety Executive ( UK government agency responsible for the encouragement, regulation and enforcement of workplace health, safety and welfare) for an outbreak of Legionnaires’ disease two years ago. Another case involved a care home being fined 600,000 pounds (approximately $777,000.00) after pleading guilty to the death of a 90 year old who died…

READ MORE
October 25, 2018 zacherlaw 0 Comments

New York City Admits Still Does Not Know Where All Cooling Towers Are

New York City Council enacted a law in 2015 after a deadly outbreak of Legionnaires’ disease in the Bronx. The law requires that every cooling tower in New York City be identified, registered and inspected on a regular basis. The city has admitted recently that it is not sure it has found all cooling towers, three years after the legislation was passed (the city health department uses experts on the street and satellite imagery to find cooling towers). This failure to even identify all cooling towers takes on added significance after one remembers that there have been two recent outbreaks…

READ MORE
October 24, 2018 zacherlaw 0 Comments

Cooling Towers as a Source of Legionnaires’ Disease

This office has had numerous inquiries regarding persons contracting Legionnaires’ disease. Often times the person does not know where they acquired the disease. Unfortunately, many times the person acquired the disease from a cooling tower. The cooling tower need not be in the vicinity of the person who acquired the disease,  or  even have been identified by health authorities. Consequently, the person may not know that a cooling tower has caused him or her to get sick. These cases are considered sporadic in nature. On the other hand, when a cooling tower has been identified as the source, as in…

READ MORE