NYC reports seventh death in Central Harlem's Legionnaires’ disease outbreak

Central Harlem's outbreak has been tied to rooftop water-cooling towers.

A seventh person has died in Central Harlem’s ongoing Legionnaires’ disease outbreak, according to an update from the city’s health department on Thursday.

It comes a week after the last reported death tied to the outbreak, which has shown signs of waning. The death total is the city's highest since a 2015 outbreak in the Bronx, which claimed 16 lives.

New York City had 114 confirmed Legionnaires’ cases as of Thursday, according to health department data, with six people currently hospitalized.

The city said that 12 water-cooling towers in Harlem tested positive for the Legionella bacteria that causes the disease, which spreads via contaminated water droplets and vapor. The city added that remediation of the towers was completed on Aug. 15.

Towers are supposed to be inspected every three months according to New York City law. Gothamist previously reported that nine of the 10 building addresses with cooling towers that tested positive for Legionella were behind on testing by their owners or hadn’t undergone city inspections in the past year, according to officials.

Gothamist reported earlier this week that a separate cluster of Legionnaires’ has also popped up in a Bronx apartment complex, according to health officials. That cluster includes four people in two buildings, who were diagnosed over several months. City health officials said it isn’t linked to the Central Harlem outbreak and is unlikely to turn into a similar public health event.

This developing story may be updated.