A second person has died and more than 50 are sick from Legionnaires' cluster in Harlem

A second person has now died and more than 50 people have fallen ill as part of a growing Legionnaires’ cluster in Harlem, city health officials reported Monday

A second person has now died and more than 50 people have fallen ill as part of a growing Legionnaires’ cluster in Harlem, city health officials reported Monday.

The disease was initially detected on July 25; since then, two people have died and 58 people have been diagnosed, the New York City Health Department revealed in its latest update.

Legionnaire’s, 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 that are 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.