Posted on 08/04/2015 1:14:45 PM PDT by george76
Five more cases of Legionnaires' disease have been added to the Bronx outbreak that has claimed seven lives and sickened more than six dozen people in the last three weeks, Mayor de Blasio said Tuesday. The number of those killed stands at seven.
The mayor's briefing comes a day after the city announced an increase in the death toll and the number of cases at a packed town hall meeting at the Bronx Museum of the Arts, where hundreds of residents gathered to hear what state, city and local officials had to say about the deadly outbreak.
Eighty-six cases of the disease, a severe, often lethal, form of pneumonia spread through the air, have been reported in the south Bronx since July 10, city officials said Tuesday. That marked 40 new cases since Wednesday, when 46 cases were announced as health officials first discussed the outbreak.
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Twenty-two buildings have been visited as "disease detectives" hunt for the source of the outbreak, the city said Friday. Seventeen of those buildings have cooling towers -- five of those tested positive for Legionella, including one at Lincoln Hospital; one at Concourse Plaza; one at a shopping plaza; one at a Verizon office building and one at the Opera House Hotel.
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Legionnaires' disease usually sets in two to 10 days after exposure to the bacteria and has symptoms similar to pneumonia, including shortness of breath, high fever, chills and chest pains. People with Legionnaires' also experience appetite loss, confusion, fatigue and muscle aches.
(Excerpt) Read more at nbcnewyork.com ...
Needless to say this would never happen in Manhattan south of 96th Street.
I have been told by plumbers that the anti-scald devices keep hot water at just the right temperature for the growth of the bacteria responsible for Legionnaire’s Disease.
Oops I meant to write that lower temperature settings on water heaters meant the hot water was kept at a temperature that was just right for the growth of the bacteria. There are anti scalding devices that work to lower the temperature of water that is hot enough in the hot water tank to prevent the growth of the bacteria. My bad.
My plumber told me the same thing
I don’t think that Legionaires’ disease comes from water heaters, but from commercial air-conditioning systems. My first wife was very sick (delirious) with it many years ago.
Cooling tower water should be treated.
It comes from both. Water heaters kept at temperatures below 140f can breed legionella. When you shower that legionella can become airborne and be breathed in.
Perhaps you are right, but all the cases I know of were in commercial buildings from the AC, where the bacteria are blown into the room air. Do you have a documented case of the disease coming from a water heater?
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