Legionnaires' death toll climbs with 4 dead in NYC

Tyler Pager | USA TODAY

The Legionnaires' outbreak in New York City continues to spread, as another person has died and eight more people were reported to be affected by the disease.

New figures released by New York City's Department of Health and Mental Hygiene on Saturday show four people have now died from the disease and 65 people have contracted it.

The data also says 20 individuals have been successfully treated, and all the people who died were "older adults" and had other underlying medical problems.

If it is caught early, Legionnaires' can be treated. Symptoms include coughing, fatigue and confusion, but the disease cannot spread from person-to-person. Instead, people contract the disease when they breathe in mist or vapor from a contaminated plumbing system.

Five buildings tested positive for the deadly bacteria, including Lincoln Hospital, Concourse Plaza and Opera House Hotel. The latest buildings to test positive are a Verizon office building and Streamline Plastic Co. Remediation has been completed at four of the buildings, and officials said "Streamline Plastic Co." is expected to complete the process by Saturday afternoon. All sites will be required to submit plans outlining how they will maintain cooling towers to guard against future outbreaks.

Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz said that right now, the city has no mechanism for enforcing inspection of coolant systems, rooftop water tanks and standing water infrastructure that can be a "breeding ground" for Legionnaires'. Diaz said Friday he is working with members of the New York City Council and agencies affected by the outbreak to craft legislation to correct this.

"The city must create a new inspection system for these systems, just as we inspect other critical systems such as elevators," Diaz said.

Officials said New York City's drinking water supply is unaffected by the disease outbreak.

Contributing: Melanie Eversley, USA TODAY