Sick with Legionnaires?
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Elliot Olsen is a nationally known Legionnaires lawyer who has regained millions for clients. If you or a family member contracted Legionnaires at the Days Inn of Casselton, you might have cause to file a lawsuit. Please call (612) 337-6126 for a free consultation.
Three cases of Legionnaires’ disease connected to the Days Inn of Casselton have caught the attention of multiple North Dakota health departments.
The North Dakota Department of Health (NDDoH) and Fargo Cass Public Health are investigating the illnesses, reported by three people who said they spent time at the Days Inn of Casselton, which features the Governors’ Water Park. None of the three were guests of the hotel, but all of them said they used the hotel’s spa.
Legionnaires’ disease – sometimes called legionellosis or Legionella pneumonia – is a severe type of pneumonia or lung infection caused by Legionella bacteria (scientific name: Legionella pneumophila).
Casselton is a town of about 2,300 in Cass County, 25 miles west of Fargo. The Days Inn of Casselton is located about 1.5 miles south of the main town, just off Interstate Hwy. 94.
Three cases of Legionnaires’ disease connected to the Days Inn of Casselton have caught the attention of multiple North Dakota health departments. (Pictured: Casselton town center)
Days Inn of Casselton:
Legionella returns
Spas frequently produce outbreaks of Legionnaires’ disease because they have a tendency to aerosolize Legionella into small water droplets, which are then inhaled into the lungs.
Environmental samples, including water and sand filter samples, were collected Jan. 8 and Jan. 9 from the Days Inn of Casselton, and one sample from the spa filter tested positive for Legionella. After the spa was cleaned and disinfected, a second sample taken on Jan. 31 was clear of bacteria, but a third sample collected Feb. 13 showed that Legionella had returned.
Officials of the hotel closed the spa until further notice, and they said they are continuing their remediation efforts. The hotel’s pool remains open.
Days Inn of Casselton:
Visitors, employees warned
If you were a hotel guest, work at the hotel, or visited the facility in February and are feeling sick, it’s possible you were exposed to Legionella. The illness typically develops within two to 10 days after exposure to the bacteria.
“If you spent time at the hotel, especially in the water park area, between Feb. 7 and 21 and are ill with undiagnosed pneumonia or you develop symptoms in the two weeks following your visit, please see a health-care provider to be evaluated for possible Legionnaires’ disease,” said Laura Cronquist, epidemiologist with the NDDoH.
“There are no recommendations to prevent illness once people have been exposed to Legionella bacteria. Instead, the focus is on rapid diagnosis and treatment, if people develop symptoms after a possible exposure.”
Days Inn of Casselton:
Legionnaires symptoms
Symptoms of Legionnaires’ disease are similar to those of other types of pneumonia and even the common flu (influenza). Symptoms generally include:
- anyone 50 or older
- smokers, current or former
- anyone with a chronic lung disease or COPD (most commonly, emphysema or bronchitis)
- anyone with a weakened immune system
- organ-transplant recipients
- anyone on a specific drug protocol (for instance, corticosteroids)
- alcoholics.
Days Inn of Casselton:
ND, MN hit hard recently
The outbreak at the Days Inn of Casselton is the second this month for a hotel in the Red River Valley, and the third time this month that Legionnaires’ disease has made headlines in North Dakota and Minnesota.
On Feb. 15, the Crookston Times reported that four people who visited the Crookston Inn and Convention Center were confirmed with the disease. Crookston is a town of about 8,000 located 85 miles northeast of Casselton in northwest Minnesota.
In addition, it was reported in early February that two patients at Alomere Health hospital in Alexandria, Minnesota, had contracted Legionnaires’ disease since November. Alexandria is 120 miles southeast of Casselton along Interstate Hwy. 94.
Days Inn of Casselton:
Check out hotel records
If you are going to stay at a facility with a hot tub or spa, here are some questions you can ask before your visit, courtesy of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC):
- What was the most recent health inspection score for the hot tub and/or spa?
- Are the disinfectant and pH levels checked at least two times a day?
- Are the disinfectant and pH levels checked more frequently when the hot tub and/or spa is being used by numerous people?
- Are the following maintenance procedures performed regularly:
- Removal of the slime or biofilm layer by scrubbing and cleaning?
- Replacement of the hot tub’s water filter according to the manufacturer’s recommendations?
- Replacement of the hot tub’s water?
Free consultation
Elliot Olsen has decades of experience representing people harmed by Legionnaires’ disease. You can contact him for a free consultation by filling out the following form and submitting it:
