NYC Health Department hosts town hall about Legionnaires' outbreak in the Bronx
Dozens of community members gathered at Metropolitan College in Melrose to learn about the disease and voice concerns.
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The Health Department hosted a town hall public meeting on Tuesday to address the Legionnaires' disease outbreak in the Bronx.
Dozens of community members gathered at Metropolitan College in Melrose to learn about the disease and voice concerns.
“We’re all breathing the same air,” said Patricia Wright, who attended the meeting. “We’re all living in the same space.”
“It’s after the fact and that’s when they want to do something,” said Roberta Yancey, who also attended the meeting.
The town hall occurred after the Health Department announced there are now 11 confirmed cases in the cluster.
One person has died. Three others remain hospitalized.
“I didn’t find out about this, ‘this’ meaning the one death, until this morning,” said Donavin White, who attended the town hall.
Health officials said they discovered the cluster on Sept. 10, when 10 cooling towers tested positive - including at Yankee Stadium and Lincoln Hospital.
The department said those towers have since been drained and cleaned.
“It’s scary, you know, to think that you walk past that area,” Yancey said. “How long has it been that way?”
New York City Health Commissioner Dr. Alister Martin said Legionnaires' is not contagious and the public cannot get the disease by drinking water or using the air conditioner.
Health officials urge residents who are experiencing feverish symptoms or cough to see their doctor.
