New York health officials investigate Legionnaires' disease outbreak linked to cooling towers
At least 28 people have fallen ill with Legionnaires' disease on Manhattan's Upper East Side, prompting city health officials to test nearly 160 cooling towers and order disinfection of 19 sites amid concerns about climate-related risk.
New York City health officials have confirmed an outbreak of Legionnaires' disease that has sickened 28 people in the Upper East Side, a residential area between Central Park and the East River. The department has collected water samples from about 160 building cooling towers and issued orders for at least 19 towers to be drained, cleaned and disinfected.
"This is now a subtropical climate," said Dr. Alister Martin, commissioner of the New York City Health Department, adding that climate change is increasing exposure to Legionella and the likelihood of clusters like the current one.
Legionella pneumophila, the bacterium that causes the disease, thrives in warm water systems and can cause severe pneumonia when inhaled in aerosols. While infection rates are low—fewer than three cases per 100,000 people—mortality can reach 10 percent among those diagnosed.
The city’s investigation will involve culturing water samples to confirm live bacteria, sequencing their genomes, and comparing them with patient samples. Because most diagnoses rely on urine tests, some cases may lack sputum specimens needed for detailed analysis. Officials expect the investigation to take several weeks, and note that in many small outbreaks the source remains unidentified.
Health experts emphasized that residents should seek medical attention if they develop fever, cough or other flu-like symptoms, but cautioned against undue alarm. The outbreak follows previous Legionnaires' cases in New York that have disproportionately affected low-income and minority neighborhoods, highlighting broader concerns about aging infrastructure and climate-related temperature increases.