Legionnaires lawyer Elliot Olsen has regained millions for clients injured by Legionnaires’ disease. If you or a family member were sickened in this North Carolina Legionnaires outbreak linked to Davis Center hot tubs, you might have reason to consider a Legionnaires lawsuit. You can do that with no strings attached; simply call Elliot at (612) 337-6126 for a free consultation.
North Carolina health officials indicated that they have a prime suspect for the Legionella bacteria that infected at least 116 Mountain State Fair attendees with potentially life-threatening Legionnaires’ disease: Davis Center hot tubs.
“We do have indication from our epidemiological study … that having walked by the hot tubs is linked to Legionnaires’ disease,” said state epidemiologist Dr. Zack Moore, referring to an events space at the WNC Agricultural Center in Fletcher.
Moore also said that patients who have developed Legionnaires’ disease are more likely to have visited during the “latter half” of the fair, which ran from Sept. 6-15.
Davis Center hot tubs:
Two vendors at fair
There were two hot tub vendors with displays at the Davis Center, and samples from one hot tub are being processed. The state’s Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS) has been unable to sample other hot tub displays from the fair.
“If the hot tubs had been drained, or drained and disinfected, it’s possible that we would not pick up any Legionella, even if it had been present during the fair,” Moore said. “Legionella has to be in water to survive.”
Moore said water samples were taken from several locations throughout the space, but only one tested positive for Legionella, a sample from a “low-traffic” women’s bathroom. One bathroom sink could not have been the source of the outbreak, because sinks don’t produce significant aerosolized water, and a majority of the patients are men.
Davis Center hot tubs:
Eighty victims hospitalized
The outbreak statistics compiled by the NCDHHS are:
- Eight victims have contracted Pontiac fever, a milder form of Legionnaires’ disease that does not affect the lungs; adding that total to the number of Legionnaires illnesses makes the total number of legionellosis cases 124. (Legionellosis is the umbrella term for diseases caused by Legionella bacteria.)
- Seventy-two victims are male (58 percent), and 50 are female (40 percent). (The NCDHHS reports that some cases were reported without a gender.)
- The age range of people infected is 24 to 91, and the median age is 61. (People over the age of 50 are particularly susceptible to Legionella.)
- Eighty people (65 percent) have been hospitalized.
- One victim has died.
- There are seven out-of-state cases, all in South Carolina.
Davis Center hot tubs:
Legionnaires symptoms
Legionnaires’ disease symptoms generally develop within 10 days after one has been exposed to Legionella. Symptoms generally begin with:
- headaches
- muscle aches
- fever, which can top 104 degrees Fahrenheit, and chills.
After the second or third day, symptoms usually worsen to include:
- coughing, which can produce mucus and blood
- shortness of breath (dyspnea)
- chest pains (pleurisy, pleuritis, or pleuritic chest pains)
- gastrointestinal problems (diarrhea, nausea, vomiting)
- confusion and other mental changes.
Legionnaires’ disease cannot be caught from someone else, and it is treatable with antibiotics if diagnosed early. If that doesn’t happen, however, the disease can lead to severe complications, including respiratory failure, kidney failure, and septic shock.
Davis Center hot tubs:
High-risk demographics
Legionnaires’ disease (also: Legionella pneumonia) is contracted by inhaling microscopic aerosolized water droplets (vapor or mist). Because many symptoms are similar to those of flu or pneumonia, the illness often is overlooked or undiagnosed, leading to it being underreported, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
People 50 years old and older – especially smokers or those with a chronic lung condition, such as COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder, most commonly bronchitis and emphysema) – are more susceptible to developing Legionnaires’ disease. Other high-risk people include:
- anyone with a compromised immune system
- organ-transplant recipients
- anyone on a specific drug protocol (for example, corticosteroids)
- alcoholics.
Free consult about
Legionnaires lawsuit
Legionnaires lawyer Elliot Olsen has decades of experience representing people injured by Legionnaires’ disease. You can contact him for a free consultation about a Legionnaires lawsuit by filling out this form and submitting it: