Legionnaires’ disease kills two, sickens 31 in New York City

The disease is caused by the bacteria Legionella and can not be spread from person to person. This colorized scanning electron micrograph with moderately-high magnification depicts a large grouping of Gram-negative Legionella pneumophila bacteria.

The Health Department reported today that at least two people have died and dozens have been sickened in the Bronx by Legionnaire’s disease, an airborne bacterial infection that’s similar to pneumonia.

The department said Wednesday that the newest wave of the pneumonia has been recorded since July 10 and it is now trying to find the correlation between the deaths and the outbreak, according to FOX News.

“We are conducting a swift investigation to determine the source of the outbreak and prevent future cases”, said Dr. Mary Bassett, the city’s health commissioner.

Bassett said city investigators are testing water from cooling towers that serve the affected neighborhoods in their attempt to pinpoint the source of the bacteria. In that case, 12 Bronx residents were diagnosed with Legionnaires’ and eight of those people were Co-Op City residents.

Symptoms of Legionnaire’s disease include headache, fatigue, loss of appetite, confusion and diarrhea. “I urge anyone with symptoms to seek medical attention right away”. The disease can be serious for people with compromised immune systems.