Another case of Legionnaires’ disease has occurred in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, bringing the total to 15 including one death since July 2018. All of the victims either lived or traveled in the city. The CDC has completed its environmental assessment by taking water samples from cooling towers and water features such as decorative fountains. Final results have not been released. What is interesting is the local health department’s comment that often a single source for the outbreak is not found. That is not the experience of this law firm. The most recent example is the outbreak associated with the…
There is no national legislation controlling the propagation of the legionella bacteria in buildings, cooling towers, or jacuzzis in the United States. In fact, there is only one state, New York, that has any statewide legislation to control legionella growth in the state’s cooling towers. Various states have levels of residual chlorine that must be in spas. This haphazard and inadequate approach is very different from that taken by the United Kingdom as indicated in a previous blog. It is time therefore, for Congress to address a national problem and enact national legislation to control the increasing incidence of Legionnaires’…
Without giving away too much about how I try a case, my firm’s focus has always been about the behavior of the party where my client contracted Legionnaires’ disease. All too often Judges and defense attorneys focus on the extent of the damages, i.e. how long the client was in the hospital and whether the client is still suffering from any residue from contracting the disease. This is a false emphasis and only one part of the equation as to how much the jury verdict should be. Rather, evidence such as a hotel where the client stayed not having a…
As mentioned in a previous blog, the United Kingdom takes a very different approach to controlling Legionnaires’ disease. Unlike the United States, the UK has a national law, the Health and Safety Act of 1974 as amended, whereby owners of premises can be criminally prosecuted if in violation of the Act. The Act requires a regular risk assessment to identify any areas in a building such as a hotel that has or could develop the legionella bacteria. Outbreaks of Legionnaires’ disease result in a full investigation as well as a possible criminal prosecution. Greater detail will be provided about the…
A second cluster of Washington Heights residents have been hospitalized because of Legionnaires’ disease. The prior outbreak in the same geographic area in July of this year resulted in numerous persons being hospitalized and one person dying. The New York City Health Department has implicated a cooling tower at the Sugar Hill Project as the source of the second outbreak. The department has directed the Sugar Hill Project to disinfect its cooling tower for the second time. This second direction by the health department points up a major weakness in the current legislative scheme. Many of the cooling towers that…
The owner of the Hampton Sands Resort has stated there is no reason for signs warning of Legionnaires’ disease at the hotel to remain after recent sampling by a contractor for the presence of the legionella bacteria hired by the hotel have proven negative. The New Hampshire Department of Health has denied this request as of Tuesday and required more sampling for the presence of legionella because additional sampling by the hotel owner which resulted in negative results did not meet the health department’s requirements. The health department stated the samples done by the hotel’s contractor came in portions smaller…
A recent outbreak of Legionnaires’ disease at the Guildford Town Centre mall in Surrey, British Columbia indicates that cooling towers at the mall may be the source of the disease. This firm has represented numerous persons who contracted the disease from a cooling tower at the Opera House Hotel in the Bronx, New York. The dynamics of a cooling tower outbreak are interesting. The cooling tower works by warm air coming from inside the building passing over cooler water in the tower. Unfortunately, biofilm builds up at the base of the tower which contains the legionella bacteria causing Legionnaires’ disease.…
Three important pieces of evidence have been revealed through the media so far about the outbreak at the Sands Resort. The owner did not have a permit for the spa, there was legionella bacteria in numerous places through out the hotel and not just the spa, and numerous people who have been associated with the hotel who have contracted the disease. These facts are important for the following reasons. Permits are issued to make sure the spa holder complies with all regulatory requirements, e.g. the amount of chlorine in the spa. Finding legionella in two different water systems within the…
Jules Zacher has been retained by two persons who contend they have contracted Legionnaires disease at the Sands Resort in Hampton New Hampshire. An Order issued by the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services indicates that the bacteria that causes the disease has been found in a hot tub, water heater, outdoor shower hose, and shower heads or sinks. The state Department of health has ordered the Sands Resort to notify all guests of the outbreak and to hire a consultant to remediate. Testing by the CDC indicates the legionella bacteria was found in shower heads or…
In a previous post, we discussed an introduction to water system maintenance. More detailed resources, however, can clearly be of great assistance in situations like this. As such, the CDC actually provides a great page to review other significant guidelines and standards that may be applicable. Resources on the page include everything from ASHRAE to the Cooling Tower Institute however what’s also of interest is that the page provides links to more healthcare-specific guidelines including those from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services as well as, of course, the CDC’s own guidelines on both matters. Here are some of…