Third person has died, 67 sickened from Legionnaires' cluster in Harlem

A third person has now died and nearly 70 people have fallen ill as part of a growing Legionnaires’ cluster in Harlem, city health officials reported Tuesday

A third person has now died and nearly 70 people have fallen ill as part of a growing Legionnaires’ cluster in Harlem, city health officials reported Tuesday.

The disease was initially detected on July 25; since then, three people have died and 67 people have been diagnosed, the New York City Health Department revealed in its latest update. That’s up from the same numbers reported just a day ago, with the Health Department said there had been two deaths and 58 confirmed cases.

Legionnaires’, a type of pneumonia, is caused by the bacteria Legionella, which grows in warm water. The cases from the cluster have been found in five Harlem ZIP codes: 10027, 10030, 10035, 10037 and 10039, along with the bordering communities, according to health officials.

“If you’re in those ZIP codes that have demonstrated exposure, then we want you to monitor your symptoms and get to a healthcare provider as soon as you can so you can get access to antibiotics, because it is treatable,” said Dr. Tony Eyssallenne, the deputy chief medical officer for the city’s Health Department.

All cooling towers operating in the impacted area have been sampled, and the Health Department has told owners of buildings where positive results were found to initiate remediation within a day.