An outbreak of Legionnaires’ disease in upstate New York continues to grow. A fifth case has now been confirmed in Plattsburgh, NY. All of the patients live in the same apartment complex on the west side of the city, and officials have notified other residents of the complex about the outbreak. The first four cases were identified in October. The patients have been treated at the Champlain Valley Physicians Hospital; the first four patients have been discharged, and the final patient remains at the hospital in stable condition. The Clinton County Health Department has been collecting water samples from the apartment…
A small outbreak of Legionnaires’ disease in upstate New York has health department officials searching for a possible source of bacteria. Four individuals have recently been treated for the disease. Three of them lived at the same Plattsburgh apartment complex, and the fourth lives nearby. The patients were being treated at the Champlain Valley Physicians Hospital in Plattsburgh. The Clinton County Health Department is working with the New York State Department of Health to investigate possible sources of Legionella bacteria. Though three of the patients live in the same apartment complex, officials cautioned that the source could be aerosolized water in…
Legionnaires’ disease has caused a second death in Niagara County, state health officials report. County Public Health Director Daniel Stapleton stated that the second victim had “underlying health conditions”, but no specific information about the patient has yet been released. Eight cases of Legionnaires’ disease have been reported in Lockport, NY The first death was that of a man who lived near the Eastern Niagara Hospital. A cooling tower on hospital property was recently found to have elevated levels of Legionella bacteria. Routine state-mandated tests revealed the colony of bacteria in the cooling tower in September. The hospital sanitized and retested the…
A late-summer cluster of Legionnaires’ disease cases in Buffalo, NY is still under investigation. The investigation began when state-mandated testing revealed that a cooling tower at the East Niagara Hospital contained elevated levels of Legionella bacteria. Testing is now being done to determine whether the strain of Legionella in the patients’ bodies is the same as that in the cooling tower. Recent legislation in New York has required building owner to test all cooling every 90 days and log their results with the State Health Department. In a routine test of the hospital’s cooling tower, levels of Legionella were found to be ten times those allowed…
Two patients at the Overlake Hospital Medical Center in Bellevue, WA were diagnosed with Legionnaires’ disease in September. One, a patient in her 50s, was treated for the disease at a different hospital six days after she visited Overlake’s emergency department. The other, a man in his 60s, had been in the hospital for treatment when he contracted the disease. The male patient had a compromised immune system due to a preexisting medical condition. Hospital officials have stated that it is unclear where the second patient contracted the disease. Preliminary tests, however, showed the presence of Legionella bacteria in a sink and…
State health officials have identified the likely source of a record-setting Legionnaires’ disease outbreak in Hopkins, MN. The bacteria has been traced to a set of cooling towers at Citrus Systems, Inc., a local beverage manufacturer. 23 people have fallen ill with Legionnaires’ disease in Hopkins; 17 of them were hospitalized, and one died. The town has been struggling to identify the source of the outbreak since early September. Health officials studied the distribution of cases and the habits of the individuals affected; several water sources throughout the town were tested for Legionella bacteria. The investigation was eventually narrowed to cover a…
Officials have updated the number of cases of Legionnaires’ disease associated with the La Quinta Inn & Suites in Memphis, TN. The Shelby County Health Department says that there are now seven confirmed cases of the disease among guests of the hotel, in addition to twenty-three possible cases. The hotel was shut down on September 22 after five former guests were diagnosed with Legionnaires’ and the outbreak was linked to the hotel. The hotel’s franchise owners worked with various health departments to eliminate the bacteria from the water supply. Now, the hotel is planning to reopen after a shutdown of nearly two weeks. No…
Officials at the University of Michigan at Flint have announced that Legionella bacteria have been found in a residence hall on campus. No associated cases of Legionnaires’ disease have yet been reported. Three locations within the water supply of the Riverfront Residence Hall, a dormitory located on the banks of Flint River, have tested positive for Legionella. UM-Flint Chancellor Susan Borrego has stated that university officials are flushing the water system in the dorm and consulting health authorities. The CDC and the Genesee County Health Department have been notified and have confirmed that none of the 10 cases reported in Genesee County so…
Several cooling towers in the town of Hopkins, MN are under investigation as the number of reported cases of Legionnaires’ disease continues to rise. The town has seen 23 cases of the disease within the past two months, one of them fatal. Residents of the town, which has a population of 18,000, were told last week that the Minnesota Department of Health is conducting tests on several water towers. The seven water towers under investigation have been named. Testing samples have been taken and the towers are now undergoing routine disinfection, though test results for Legionella are not yet available. No…
Two students at the Allegheny Valley School in Coraopolis, PA have been infected with Legionella bacteria. Spokespeople at the school, which provides services to those with intellectual and developmental disabilities, confirmed the two cases and stated that the campus was being tested. All tests so far have been negative and the investigation continues. As a precaution, students and staff have been given bottled water. The Allegheny County Health Department has been involved in the investigation. This is the second time Legionella bacteria have been found in an Allegheny County facility recently–the Allegheny General Hospital found the bacteria in its water system earlier this year,…