New York City health officials have launched an investigation into a likely community cluster of Legionnaires' disease on Manhattan's Upper East Side, after two people in the area were diagnosed with the serious lung infection. Authorities urged residents and visitors with symptoms to seek medical care as they worked to pin down the source.
The cases were concentrated in a specific part of the Upper East Side. Officials said the two people had been diagnosed in the Carnegie Hill and Yorkville neighborhoods, which fall within the 10028 and 10128 ZIP codes.
The count could still grow. As of the announcement, two cases had been confirmed, while test results were pending for other potential cases, and the Health Department said no deaths had been associated with the cluster so far.
The city moved before hitting its usual threshold. Officials noted that they typically wait until three cases are confirmed before formally declaring a cluster, but said they were acting quickly to identify the source and head off any further infections.
That search focused on a familiar culprit. The Health Department said it was testing water from cooling towers throughout the affected area, noting that past outbreaks in the city had been linked to Legionella bacteria spreading through mist released by contaminated cooling towers.
The illness itself is a form of pneumonia. Legionnaires' disease is caused by breathing in water vapor that contains Legionella bacteria, and it is not spread from person to person, meaning the risk is tied to the environment rather than close contact.
Officials issued clear guidance for the public. Anyone who lives or works in the affected area, or who has visited it since late June, and is experiencing flu-like symptoms such as fever, cough or difficulty breathing was advised to contact a healthcare provider right away.
For now, the investigation remained ongoing. With the holiday weekend approaching and the source not yet confirmed, health officials signaled they would keep testing and monitoring the neighborhood as they tried to contain the cluster.