14 Sick In Washington Heights Legionnaires' Outbreak: City

WASHINGTON HEIGHTS, NY — The patient count for a Legionnaires' Disease outbreak in Washington Heights has been increased to 14, city health officials said Friday.

City Health Department officials have tested the cooling towers of 20 buildings in an area vaguely defined as "lower Washington Heights" and is saying that neighborhood residents can continue to use water as usual despite the rise in the number of people sickened by the outbreak. The cluster of Legionnaires' Disease in "lower Washington Heights" was first reported Wednesday after eight people fell ill with the bacterial disease in a span of seven days.

After inspecting 20 cooling towers, city health officials have ordered several buildings to increase the use of biocides that kill the bacteria Legionella — which grows in warm water — a Health Department spokesperson said. Buildings will be required to report compliance with city officials, who are awaiting further test results.

No deaths have been linked to the Washington Heights Legionnaires' outbreak and most of the people sickened by the disease are older than 50 years old, health officials said. The Health Department is warning people to be vigilant should they experience flu-like symptoms.

The department listed the area of the outbreak as "lower Washington Heights," but did not provide details as to what that area entails. A Health Department spokeswoman told Patch that the department does not disclose the specific locations of outbreaks.

Legionnaires' symptoms include fever, cough, chills, muscle aches, headache, fatigue, loss of appetite, confusion and diarrhea and generally surface two to 10 days after contact with the bacteria Legionella. Common culprits in the spread of the Legionella bacteria include cooling towers, whirlpool spas, hot tubs, humidifiers, hot water tanks, and evaporative condensers of large air-conditioning systems, the Department of Health said. The city sees an average of 200 to 500 cases of Legionnaires' Disease each year, health officials said.

The disease cannot be spread from one person to another, the Department of Health said in a statement.

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