NYC to Publish List of Upper East Side Buildings with Positive Legionella Tests
City officials will release Friday a list of Upper East Side properties whose cooling towers tested positive for Legionella as 46 cases of Legionnaires' disease have been confirmed, with 22 patients still hospitalized.
New York City health officials plan to disclose on Friday the addresses of buildings on the Upper East Side whose cooling towers have returned positive PCR results for Legionella bacteria. Since early July, the city has tested roughly 150 cooling towers in the area, finding a few dozen with positive results and issuing immediate cleaning and disinfection orders.
The department believes a cooling tower that disperses a mist is the most likely source of the outbreak, which has so far produced 46 confirmed cases of Legionnaires' disease, including 22 hospitalizations. One identified location is 1511 Third Avenue, which tested positive in the city’s assessment despite a negative result during its routine private inspection. Authorities have ordered the building’s owner to drain, clean and disinfect the tower, though they have not determined whether the detected bacteria are viable.
Testing continues across several Upper East Side ZIP codes, covering neighborhoods such as Carnegie Hill, Yorkville and Lenox Hill. Residents have expressed a desire for more information about affected buildings. > "I had no idea about this building. They should put up a sign so people are aware of what's going on," said one resident. > "Not enough info going around... hoping to get more clarity," said another, adding that a rapid spread could alter daily activities.
The health department says broader testing is underway to pinpoint the exact source of exposure, and the full list of positive cooling tower sites is expected later Friday.