One person is dead as city health officials confirmed five new cases of Legionnaires’ disease from a new outbreak in the Bronx, officials said Thursday.
The new disease cluster is centered on the Melrose and Morrisania sections of the Bronx, NYC Health Commissioner Dr. Alister Martin said.
“Water ecologists are sampling cooling towers in the affected area, and community health workers will be canvassing the neighborhood to track the spread of the disease,” Martin said on X.
Property owners will be required to immediately clean and disinfect any cooling tower that tests positive for the Legionella bacteria, he said. Martin advised anyone who has visited the area since late August who experiences flu-like symptoms to contact a health care provider as soon as possible.
“We are deeply concerned by the news of a new Legionnaires’ disease cluster affecting Melrose and Morrisania in the Bronx,” City Council Speaker Julie Menin said in a statement Thursday. “Five New Yorkers have already been diagnosed and, tragically, one person has died. Our hearts are with their family and loved ones.”
The Bronx cluster follows an outbreak of Legionnaires’ disease on the Upper East Side that claimed 11 lives and infected 94 people over the summer.
A screening of 160 buildings on the Upper East Side found Legionella bacteria, the microbe responsible for spreading the disease, in at least 77 cooling towers, including at the Guggenheim Museum and the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Most people exposed to the bacteria don’t become sick. The disease is contracted by breathing in water vapor, not spread from person to person, officials said.
Symptoms typically develop between two to 14 days after exposure and include fever, chills, muscle aches, shortness of breath and coughing. According to DOH, “It remains safe to shower, drink tap water and use air conditioners in the affected zip codes.”
The disease is fatal in about 10% of cases and is most dangerous for those above age 50 or with compromised immune systems or chronic lung diseases.
