A sixth death has been announced in the Legionnaires’ disease community cluster in Central Harlem, officials said. The outbreak now has six deaths and 111 confirmed cases, with seven people hospitalized.
The New York City Health Department is investigating an outbreak of Legionnaires’ disease in Central Harlem, affecting ZIP codes 10027, 10030, 10035, 10037, and 10039. The state health department will conduct a thorough review of the city’s response to the deadly outbreak.
Scientists are using DNA testing to determine which cooling tower caused the illnesses. Water samples from the cooling towers are being tested in a week-long process at the Department of Health lab for Legionella. The test involves placing droplets on a plate and analyzing the culture growth, which takes 10 days.
The investigation involves multiple steps, including analyzing cultures taken from patients who have tested positive for the disease, identifying specific strains, and extracting DNA from bacteria in cooling towers and patient samples. The DNA is then sequenced to determine the genetic code, generating hundreds of gigabytes of data that are analyzed to identify a match.
The goal is to pinpoint the exact cooling tower that made people sick, a process similar to detective work done on other public health threats. The investigation is ongoing, with officials working to identify food-borne outbreaks and monitor tick and mosquito surveillance.
Source: https://abc7ny.com/post/legionnaires-disease-outbreak-sixth-person-dies-harlem-cases-rise-111/17607821