“The hunt was on.” That’s how The New York Times iframed the search for thesource of the deadly Legionnaires’ disease outbreak now unfolding in Manhattan.It is an apt metaphor, because when Legionella pneumophila bacteria surface in acity like New York, the chase resembles a high-stakes detective story. The culpritsare invisible, their habitat is hidden, and the cost of delay is measured in lives. A Race Against Time The article describes how health officials, engineers, and epidemiologists havefanned out across Manhattan, scouring cooling towers, plumbing systems, androoftop reservoirs. Their mission: identify the contaminated water system seedingthe outbreak. Each day matters. Legionnaires’…