76 UES Buildings Test Positive For Legionella: See New List - Patch
New York City health officials have identified 76 buildings on the Upper East Side with cooling towers testing positive for Legionella bacteria. While 57 towers have been disinfected, the city is conducting further tests to determine the source of a recent Legionnaires' disease outbreak.
Why it matters
Public health outbreaks in densely populated urban areas require rapid identification and remediation to prevent further illness and potential fatalities.
UPPER EAST SIDE, NY — New York City health officials said Tuesday that 76 buildings have cooling towers that have tested positive for Legionella bacteria in a PCR test on the Upper East Side, up from the 31 buildings confirmed last week.
Officials have released the 45 addresses of the buildings newly added to the list. Several private schools, including Spence and Dalton, are on the new list, as well as the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
So far, 57 of these 76 total cooling towers have already been disinfected, and the remaining 19 will be remediated by Thursday, officials from the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene said during a press briefing Wednesday.
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