Upper Manhattan Legionnaires community meeting Tuesday

Prominent Manhattan attorney Scott Harford, working in conjunction with noted Legionnaires lawyer Elliot Olsen, will conduct a Legionnaires community meeting tomorrow to inform Upper Manhattan residents of their legal rights in regards to the area’s two Legionnaires’ disease outbreaks this year.

The meeting will be held from 5 to 8 p.m. in the conference room of the Edge Hotel, 514 West 168th Street (between Amsterdam and Audubon).

Almost 60 residents of Upper Manhattan have been sickened by Legionnaires’ disease in the past six months – and two of them died. The source of both outbreaks was a contaminated cooling tower at Harlem’s Sugar Hill Project, 898 St. Nicholas Avenue (St. Nicholas and 155th).

Harford will provide residents the opportunity to gather information on the potentially deadly lung disease as he helps them better understand the legal ramifications of their situation. To assist, he will be accompanied by a Dominican Spanish speaker.

Scott Harford
Harford P.C.
299 Broadway, #1310
New York, NY 10007
212-390-8983
scott.harford@harford-law.com

Legionnaires community meeting: 59 ill, 2 dead

About three weeks ago, the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) released its final update on the second Legionnaires outbreak, announcing that 32 people had been sickened, and one victim had died.

Twenty-seven people were sickened in the first outbreak, which occurred over the summer. In that outbreak, 25 needed to be hospitalized, and one patient died.

Legionnaires community meeting: stay aware

Despite the DOHMH statement that the outbreak is over, residents, people employed in the area, and anyone traveling through the neighborhood should continue to be alert. An infected person might not show symptoms immediately because of the disease’s long incubation period (up to two weeks).

Legionnaires’ disease is not contagious, and if it is caught early enough, it can be treated with antibiotics. Anyone with flu-like symptoms – difficulty breathing, cough, fever – should see their health-care provider out of an abundance of caution.

Prominent Manhattan attorney Scott Harford, working in conjunction with noted Legionnaires lawyer Elliot Olsen, will conduct a Legionnaires community meeting from 5 to 8 p.m. Tuesday at the Edge Hotel, 514 West 168th Street. The purpose of the meeting is to inform Upper Manhattan residents of their legal rights in regards to the area’s two Legionnaires’ disease outbreaks this year. (Pictured: Sugar Hill Project, source of the outbreaks.)

Legionnaires community meeting: diagnosis difficult

Because Legionnaires’ disease symptoms are similar to symptoms of pneumonia (lung infection) or influenza (flu), many cases go unreported. Statistics compiled by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) show that only about 5,000 of the estimated 25,000 annual cases in the United States are reported because of the disease’s nonspecific signs and symptoms.

In addition, approximately 10 percent of people infected with Legionella bacteria (Legionella pneumophila) will die from the infection.

Legionnaires community meeting: mist, vapor

Legionnaires’ disease is a bacterial infection that is also known as legionellosis and Legionella pneumonia. The bacteria are contracted by inhaling microscopic water droplets (mist or vapor).

Legionella grow best in warm water, and they are found primarily in human-made environments, including:

• cooling towers of air conditioning systems, as is the case with these outbreaks
• water systems, like those used in hospitals, nursing homes, and hotels
• large plumbing systems
• hot-water tanks and heaters
• showers and faucets
• mist machines, like those used in the produce sections of grocery stores
• hand-held sprayers
• swimming pools, whirlpools, hot tubs
• physical-therapy equipment
• decorative fountains.

Legionnaires community meeting: high risk

Anyone can breathe in Legionella bacteria, but people most susceptible to becoming ill include:

• anyone 50 years old or older
• smokers, current or former
• anyone with a chronic lung disease, or COPD (most commonly, emphysema or bronchitis)
• anyone with a compromised immune system
• alcoholics
• organ-transplant recipients
• anyone on a specific drug protocol (for instance, corticosteroids).

Legionnaires community meeting: symptoms

Legionnaires’ disease symptoms generally begin with the following:

• severe headaches
• fever (104 degrees or higher) and chills
• muscle pains
• no appetite.

After a few days, symptoms can worsen to include:

• chest pain, also called pleuritic chest pain (pain caused by inflamed lungs)
• difficulty breathing (dyspnea)
• coughing, which can produce mucus or blood
• gastrointestinal problems (diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, etc.)
• mental agitation and confusion.