By Jessica Easthope
A town hall meeting was held at St. Ignatius Loyola Church on the Upper East Side of Manhattan, July 7. Officials from the New York City Health Department addressed the current outbreak of Legionnaires’ Disease. There are currently 23 confirmed cases across three ZIP codes in Manhattan, Yorkville, Lenox Hill, and Carnegie Hill. There have been 17 people hospitalized.
During the town hall residents were demanding answers as city health officials promised to be extremely aggressive and transparent in their approach. They are currently looking for a source. It’s believed to be originating from a cooling tower. They are heat rejection systems that sit on top of large buildings for refrigeration and air conditioning. It’s possible improper maintenance caused contamination and Legionella bacteria is in the mist being expelled and falling onto the area, making people sick. Symptoms include high fever, chills, aches, cough, nausea and vomiting. If you’re experiencing any of these symptoms, you are encouraged to seek medical attention.
While Legionnaires’ Disease itself is not contagious, it is a form of pneumonia, so these symptoms can take anywhere from two-to-14 days after exposure to appear. The number of confirmed cases is expected to rise as more people develop symptoms. Health officials have promised to identify the source and disinfect the affected cooling towers.
FOR MORE INFORMATION ON TOWN HALLS, SYMPTOMS AND CASES VISIT nyc.gov.