NYC detects second Legionnaires’ outbreak of summer in the South Bronx
Credit: Shannon McNay on Unsplash
New York City has detected its second Legionnaires’ disease outbreak of the summer, prompting the cleaning and disinfection of 10 cooling towers in the South Bronx. On Sunday, the city’s Health Department announced that the towers were being cleaned in ZIP codes 10451 and 10456, which cover Melrose and Morrisania. The agency told The City Reporter that 10 people had been diagnosed with the disease as of Sunday, including one person who died. The new community cluster marks the second outbreak in recent months, after the first sickened at least 76 people and killed four across the Upper East Side in June and July.
According to the Health Department, testing of the towers is preliminary. Initial PCR tests can detect the presence of Legionella bacteria but cannot determine whether the bacteria are alive or dead or confirm whether the sampled tower is the source of exposure.
The 10 cooling towers with positive PCR results are located at 820 Concourse Village West, 234 East 149th Street, 1 East 161st Street, 470 East 161st Street, 1265 Franklin Avenue, 567 Melrose Avenue, 3339 Park Avenue, 1160 Teller Avenue, 890 Washington Avenue, and 1085 Washington Avenue.
The affected towers include one at Yankee Stadium, where the Yankees and Mets played a three-game Subway Series over the weekend. Nearby Lincoln Hospital also has a cooling tower that preliminarily tested positive for Legionella, according to The City Reporter.
Eight of the 10 towers with positive PCR results were confirmed to have complied with a city requirement to test their water every 31 days, which took effect May 8. The towers at 820 Concourse Village West and 1265 Franklin Avenue did not provide the required testing information.
Yankee Stadium disinfected its cooling tower on Sunday, telling The City Reporter that it had submitted its most recent monthly test to the Health Department on August 20. City health officials did not require Yankees staff to postpone any games after the tower returned a positive PCR test on Friday.
Similarly, a spokesperson for Lincoln Hospital said it follows rigorous maintenance and inspection protocols for its cooling towers and that the affected tower has since been “completely drained, cleaned, and disinfected.”
According to a review of city records by The City Reporter, most building owners in the South Bronx ZIP codes were complying with the 31-day testing requirement. However, five properties, including 820 Concourse Village West and 1265 Franklin Avenue, were not in compliance.
Other properties that did not return positive PCR results but also failed to comply with the testing requirement include 1332 Fulton Avenue, 810 River Avenue, and 214 East 161st Street.
In addition to PCR screening, the department has begun culture testing on all sampled cooling towers. Results can take up to two weeks and will determine which towers had live Legionella bacteria growing when the samples were collected.
So far, the Health Department has tested 24 cooling towers as part of its investigation. The department completed all annual inspections in 2025 and is on track to complete its 2026 inspections. It will inspect any cooling tower that tests positive during the investigation to assess compliance with city laws.
On Friday, the department’s community health workers began canvassing the affected neighborhoods. They have engaged more than 400 community members and 46 organizations, attended six community events, and distributed more than 1,100 flyers and palm cards.
Public health guidance is also being shared through social media, the press, LinkNYC kiosks, radio stations, and NotifyNYC, and in collaboration with local elected officials and community leaders.
Anyone who lives, works, or has visited the affected ZIP codes since late August and develops flu-like symptoms is advised to contact a health care provider immediately.
According to the city, it is safe to shower, drink tap water, and use air conditioners in the affected ZIP codes unless otherwise advised. There is also no additional risk from being inside any of the 10 affected buildings.
The Department will also host a town hall about the community cluster Tuesday at 6 p.m. in Room 201 of the Welcome Center at Metropolitan College, 463 East 149th Street in the Bronx.
Legionnaires’ disease is a severe form of pneumonia caused by Legionella bacteria, which thrive in warm, stagnant water. Symptoms typically develop two to 14 days after exposure and may include fever, chills, muscle aches, and a cough. The disease can usually be treated effectively with antibiotics, especially when diagnosed early, as 6sqft previously reported.
Rooftop cooling towers used in building air-conditioning and refrigeration systems can provide ideal conditions for the bacteria to grow. During the summer, cooling towers can release water vapor containing Legionella bacteria that may travel thousands of feet before being inhaled, according to the Times.
The second outbreak comes as the city has ramped up its Legionnaires’ disease prevention measures following the previous outbreak. The new policies use the Health Department and Department of Buildings registration and tracking systems to identify potentially noncompliant cooling towers.
To improve public education and transparency before an outbreak investigation begins, the Health Department has expanded its existing address-based cooling tower lookup tool to allow New Yorkers to view unregistered towers across all five boroughs.
Additionally, new legal procedures give building owners who receive summonses for violating cooling tower regulations the earliest possible hearing date, helping to ensure that decontamination is completed as quickly as possible.
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