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Legionnaires’ cases rise on Upper East Side; Westchester tracks stomach illness outbreak
New York City health officials say 63 cases of Legionnaires’ disease have been confirmed on the Upper East Side, with 76 buildings testing positive for the bacteria that causes the illness. Officials say the spread appears to be slowing, but they are urging anyone in the impacted zip codes with cough, fever, shortness of breath or flu-like symptoms to see a doctor. Health officials are also warning residents in Westchester and Nassau counties to wash fruits and vegetables amid a nationwide cyclosporiasis outbreak. The CDC has reported more than 1,600 cases across 34 states since the beginning of May.
UPPER EAST SIDE - A fourth person has died from the Legionnaires' disease cluster on the Upper East Side, according to the city's health commissioner.
4th person dead from Legionnaires'
What we know:
New York City Health Commissioner Dr. Alister Martin confirmed the fourth death on X:
The city announced the first death associated with the cluster in Carnegie Hill and Yorkville neighborhoods on Friday. The second death was reported Saturday.
Martin said city health officials remain confident the source of the Legionella exposure was eliminated after ordering 76 buildings with cooling towers in the affected zip codes – 10028, 10075 and 10128 – to undergo "aggressive remediation" and disinfect their systems on July 14.
"While we continue to investigate cases and closely monitor those in the hospital, we have not identified anyone with new symptoms for more than a week, and we are not seeing any concerning trends in emergency department surveillance data," Martin said. "We will continue inspecting every cooling tower that tested positive and will hold accountable any owner who fails to comply with our public health laws."
What you can do:
The city continues advising anyone who spent time in the affected zip codes to seek medical attention if they develop flu-like symptoms, which could appear up to 14 days after exposure.
The Source: This article includes a statement posted on social media by NYC Health Commissioner Dr. Alister Martin.