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NEW YORK — New cases have been identified in a growing Legionnaires’ disease cluster in the South Bronx in New York City.
City health officials have ordered 10 cooling towers, including at Yankee Stadium, to be cleaned and disinfected after preliminary testing detected Legionella bacteria.
The New York City Health Department said nine people have now been diagnosed with Legionnaires’ disease in connection with the cluster in the Melrose and Morrisania sections of the Bronx, up from five cases reported earlier in the week. One person has died, three people remain hospitalized, four have been discharged and one person did not require hospitalization.
As investigators work to identify the source of the outbreak, the city has ordered 10 cooling towers to undergo full remediation, including draining, cleaning and disinfection, by Monday.
Health officials said preliminary PCR testing detected the presence of Legionella bacteria at the sites, though the results do not confirm whether the bacteria were alive or whether any of the cooling towers are responsible for the outbreak. Additional culture testing is underway and could take up to two weeks.
The Health Department tested 24 cooling towers after launching the investigation on Sept. 10. Among the locations ordered to be cleaned is the cooling tower at 1 E. 161st St., the address of Yankee Stadium, along with nine other properties in the affected area.
The Yankees released a statement Sunday night saying in part:
“In 2024, the Yankees installed new, state-of-the-art, high-efficiency chiller towers at Yankee Stadium, which have undergone water quality and bacteriological indicator testing on a weekly basis over the last three years. In accordance with New York City Department of Health regulations, Yankee Stadium provides these results to the NYC DOH on a monthly basis. In the most recent monthly testing on Aug. 20, which was provided to the Department of Health, results were negative for Legionella bacteria. Subsequent to that test, weekly water quality and bacteriological indicator testing was performed on Aug. 26, Sept. 2 and Sept. 9. Due to the recent community cluster of Legionella bacteria in the Melrose and Morrisania areas of the Bronx (zip codes 10451 and 10456) last week, the NYC Dept. of Health conducted 24 PCR (Polymerase Chain Reaction) tests of cooling towers in the area, including one at Yankee Stadium on Sept. 11. Yankee Stadium tested positive for trace amounts of Legionella bacteria and was one of 10 cooling towers in the Bronx that tested positive. A PCR test, which is different from the independent monthly testing Yankee Stadium regularly undertakes, can detect the presence of Legionella bacteria DNA but cannot determine whether the bacteria are alive or dead and does not confirm that a cooling tower is the source of exposure. Only live Legionella bacteria can cause illness. The Health Department is now conducting culture testing to determine whether live Legionella bacteria were present when the samples were collected. Culture results can take up to two weeks. No current cases have been associated with Yankee Stadium. Additionally, the New York City Department of Health has not at any point this month asked us to postpone our games.”
Officials stressed there is no additional risk from being inside any of the buildings and that it remains safe to drink tap water, shower and use air conditioners in the impacted neighborhoods.
Health officials are urging anyone who lives, works or has visited the area since late August to seek medical attention if they develop symptoms including fever, chills, cough, muscle aches or shortness of breath.
Community outreach efforts have expanded in recent days, with health workers distributing more than 1,100 informational flyers and engaging hundreds of residents as the investigation continues.
The city’s Health Department hosted a virtual Town Hall Sunday and will host an in-person town hall at 6 p.m. Tuesday at Metropolitan College in the Bronx.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art was previously ordered to take action due to Legionella bacteria.
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