NYC Health Department reports five Legionnaires' disease cases and one death in South Bronx cluster

The New York City Health Department said Thursday that five individuals have been diagnosed with Legionnaires' disease and one person has died in a newly identified cluster affecting the 10451 and 10456 ZIP codes, which cover parts of Melrose and Morrisania in the South Bronx. Officials are awaiting test results for additional potential cases.

Health investigators are sampling cooling towers in the area and have begun testing water sources for Legionella bacteria. Clinicians have been urged to consider the disease in patients with relevant symptoms and to order appropriate testing.

"I understand that New Yorkers may have heightened concerns following the recent Upper East Side cluster," said Dr. Alister F. Martin, the city health commissioner, adding that water ecologists are sampling cooling towers and any that test positive will undergo immediate cleaning and disinfection.

The outbreak follows a larger incident earlier this summer on Manhattan's Upper East Side that resulted in more than 90 cases and 11 deaths, which was linked to contaminated building cooling towers. Legionnaires' disease, a severe form of pneumonia caused by inhaling Legionella bacteria, typically spreads through contaminated water systems rather than person-to-person contact. The CDC notes that about 10% of infected individuals die, with higher mortality among those with compromised immune systems or chronic lung conditions.

Residents, workers, or visitors in the affected zip codes since late August are advised to seek medical care promptly if they develop fever, cough, shortness of breath, or muscle aches.