Is Legionnaires’ Disease Lurking in Your Vertical Community?
If you have cooling towers at your community you might want make sure they are disease free. The Legionnaires' disease is a type of pneumonia caused by “legionella” bacteria, named for a 1976 outbreak following an American Legion convention in Philadelphia.
This bacterium multiplies in warm water and that is why its outbreaks usually occur in the summer. The outbreak in Philly spread through the hotel’s air-conditioning system, sickening 221 and killing 34. This illness is now becoming more common; the number of cases has gone from 1,110 in 2000 to 3,522 in 2009. This is a very dangerous bug. A recent New York City law requires all building owners to register and inspect their cooling towers to prevent future outbreaks. Thereafter, the State of New York implemented the same guidelines requiring registration, testing, inspection and certification of cooling towers and also mandates timeframes and processes for each of the requirements. Here in California we’re under less government restriction. However, it is imperative that if you have a vertical community that you have your boilers and mechanical equipment inspected at least monthly. Read More: Legionnaires ‘disease Risk Management
