There is no national legislation controlling the propagation of the legionella bacteria in buildings, cooling towers, or jacuzzis in the United States. In fact, there is only one state, New York, that has any statewide legislation to control legionella growth in the state’s cooling towers. Various states have levels of residual chlorine that must be in spas. This haphazard and inadequate approach is very different from that taken by the United Kingdom as indicated in a previous blog. It is time therefore, for Congress to address a national problem and enact national legislation to control the increasing incidence of Legionnaires’…
Without giving away too much about how I try a case, my firm’s focus has always been about the behavior of the party where my client contracted Legionnaires’ disease. All too often Judges and defense attorneys focus on the extent of the damages, i.e. how long the client was in the hospital and whether the client is still suffering from any residue from contracting the disease. This is a false emphasis and only one part of the equation as to how much the jury verdict should be. Rather, evidence such as a hotel where the client stayed not having a…
As mentioned in a previous blog, the United Kingdom takes a very different approach to controlling Legionnaires’ disease. Unlike the United States, the UK has a national law, the Health and Safety Act of 1974 as amended, whereby owners of premises can be criminally prosecuted if in violation of the Act. The Act requires a regular risk assessment to identify any areas in a building such as a hotel that has or could develop the legionella bacteria. Outbreaks of Legionnaires’ disease result in a full investigation as well as a possible criminal prosecution. Greater detail will be provided about the…
A second cluster of Washington Heights residents have been hospitalized because of Legionnaires’ disease. The prior outbreak in the same geographic area in July of this year resulted in numerous persons being hospitalized and one person dying. The New York City Health Department has implicated a cooling tower at the Sugar Hill Project as the source of the second outbreak. The department has directed the Sugar Hill Project to disinfect its cooling tower for the second time. This second direction by the health department points up a major weakness in the current legislative scheme. Many of the cooling towers that…
This law firm will issue a white paper on the need for stringent legislation at the national level to curtail the increasing incidence of Legionnaires’ disease throughout the United States. Rather than rolling out the paper at one time, various chapters will be issued that when taken as a whole make up the white paper. While many of you might not be familiar with the term white paper, it refers to reports that were issued by the British government regarding matters of concern to the general public. What could be more pressing in this country than Congress passing legislation that…
The owner of the Hampton Sands Resort has stated there is no reason for signs warning of Legionnaires’ disease at the hotel to remain after recent sampling by a contractor for the presence of the legionella bacteria hired by the hotel have proven negative. The New Hampshire Department of Health has denied this request as of Tuesday and required more sampling for the presence of legionella because additional sampling by the hotel owner which resulted in negative results did not meet the health department’s requirements. The health department stated the samples done by the hotel’s contractor came in portions smaller…
A recent outbreak of Legionnaires’ disease at the Guildford Town Centre mall in Surrey, British Columbia indicates that cooling towers at the mall may be the source of the disease. This firm has represented numerous persons who contracted the disease from a cooling tower at the Opera House Hotel in the Bronx, New York. The dynamics of a cooling tower outbreak are interesting. The cooling tower works by warm air coming from inside the building passing over cooler water in the tower. Unfortunately, biofilm builds up at the base of the tower which contains the legionella bacteria causing Legionnaires’ disease.…
Some interesting developments have occurred regarding the outbreak at the Sands Hotel. Most notable is the source of persons contracting Legionnaires’ disease not just being from the indoor spa or potable water system at the hotel, but also from the air vent from the indoor spa. This would explain the number of cases associated with the hotel by the health authority who have not actually having stayed at the hotel but have been near the it. Perhaps of greater significance is the match between the environmental sample taken from the hotel and the clinical (hospital) sample of one of the…
Jules Zacher has been retained by two persons who contend they have contracted Legionnaires disease at the Sands Resort in Hampton New Hampshire. An Order issued by the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services indicates that the bacteria that causes the disease has been found in a hot tub, water heater, outdoor shower hose, and shower heads or sinks. The state Department of health has ordered the Sands Resort to notify all guests of the outbreak and to hire a consultant to remediate. Testing by the CDC indicates the legionella bacteria was found in shower heads or…
In another attempt to review some of the basics regarding Legionnaires’ disease and Legionella bacteria, this post will go over the mechanism of how an individual biologically contracts Legionnaires’ disease. To start, Legionella bacteria has to enter the lung, either through the aspiration of water which has been contaminated by Legionella bacteria or the inhalation of aerosolized water or soil which has been contaminated by Legionella bacteria. When in the lung, the Legionella bacteria are eventually consumed by a form of a white blood cell known as macrophages. Once inside of the macrophages within the lung, the Legionella bacteria will multiply which causes the…