Dozens of inmates and at least four staff members at San Quentin State Prison were sickened since last August due to Legionnaire's disease.
Tests conducted on two cooling towers located on the roof of the prison's Central Health Services Building revealed that it had high levels of the bacterium, Fox News reported
The results revealed by the federal receiver in charge of the prisoners' medical care, J. Clark Kelso, stated that people who passed by near towers might have inadvertently inhaled the mist contaminated by the bacteria.
The cooling towers have since been disinfected and San Quentin is now back to normal, according to Fox.
Although things got better in the California prison, the same thing cannot be said of New York City, where a new cluster of the disease has been discovered.
The source of Legionnaire's outbreak in New York City has finally been identified. A report last Thursday puts the blame on dirty cooling towers, just like in the San Quentin prison outbreak.
One death has already been attributed to the new cluster that was discovered in Morris Park area, a Wednesday report stated. Twelve people have already been sickened.
The new cluster was discovered just six miles from where the previous outbreak in South Bronx started. Health department authorities believe the two clusters are not related to each other.
The city now has a new legislation ordering cooling towers scattered in the city to undergo regular testing for Legionella bacteria. Towers that will test positive should immediately be disinfected.
Legionnaire's disease can be considered as a severe form of pneumonia that can cause symptoms such as cough, chills, and high fever. The disease is spread through inhalation of contaminated steam or moisture.
Older people, especially those who smoke, have chronic lung disease, or have weak immune system are more prone to the disease. Most cases of Legionnaire's disease can be treated with antibiotics.
