Harlem Legionnaires’ Disease Outbreak Linked to Hospital and Construction Site
The city health department has identified a city hospital and a construction site as the sources of a Legionnaires’ disease outbreak in Harlem this summer. So far, the outbreak has impacted 114 individuals, resulting in 90 hospitalizations and seven deaths.
During a virtual press briefing, health officials explained their approach to pinpointing the outbreak’s origin, which involved analyzing genetic material from Legionella found in cooling towers. These towers are essential for air conditioning systems but can become breeding grounds for bacteria if not properly maintained.
“Both locations have undergone thorough remediation and their cooling towers have been sanitized,” stated Health Commissioner Michelle Morse. “We are collaborating with these buildings to establish long-term management strategies to safeguard the health of Harlem residents.”
The first site identified was Harlem Hospital, located at 506 Lenox Ave. This facility was also linked to a previous outbreak in 2021 that led to more than a dozen hospitalizations.
Don Weiss, a former city health official with experience in responding to infectious disease outbreaks, criticized the recurrence of issues at Harlem Hospital. “They should have maintained a close watch on their systems,” he remarked. “You’d think they would go above and beyond the testing requirements to avoid making headlines again.”
The second site involved in the outbreak is a construction project for a public health lab at 40 West 137th St., overseen by the NYC Economic Development Corporation and Skanska USA.
Public health data indicates that the hospital had been compliant with the regulations requiring quarterly Legionella testing, with its latest sample submitted in June.
Interestingly, a prior analysis revealed that inspections of cooling towers in the city have been declining since these regulations were initiated. Following an uptick in inspections right after the COVID-19 pandemic, the numbers started to fall again in 2022 after Mayor Eric Adams took office, an issue the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene attributed to staffing shortages.
Morse highlighted that the identification of the buildings was made through genetic matching of samples from both the cooling towers and the infected individuals.
Deputy Commissioner Corinne Schiff, who heads the Division of Environmental Health, mentioned she wasn’t sure if the construction site had been conducting regular Legionella testing but assured that the department would look into it.
According to available public records, there are no documented tests or inspections for Legionella at the construction site.
Chris Boyd, a former assistant commissioner at the health department who helped draft new regulations following a significant outbreak in 2015, argued that this recent event was entirely avoidable. “The health department is downplaying the reality that these issues only arise in systems that aren’t properly managed,” he said.
In the wake of the briefing, former Governor Andrew Cuomo, who is currently campaigning for mayor, urged the state Department of Health to carry out an independent investigation into how the city dealt with the outbreak. He emphasized that, with the outbreak tied to a city-run facility, transparency and accountability were crucial.
Morse announced that, in response to the outbreak, the department would increase penalties for building owners failing to conduct regular Legionella testing. She also mentioned that testing frequency would be tightened from every 90 days to every 30 days.
Furthermore, she noted efforts to hire more water ecologists to tackle existing staff shortages, yet specifics on budget adjustments for these positions were not provided.
Notably, a previous analysis highlighted the loss of over a third of the health department’s cooling tower inspectors in the past three years, despite an increase in funding for the unit responsible for conducting inspections.
