Co-op City Decontaminates Cooling Towers After Legionnaires' Hits Eight Residents

Jan. 15, 2015 — Co-op City has had a rough start to 2015. The RiverBay board of directors is already in hot water with the New York State Homes and Community Renewal agency, and is being sued by ousted property manager Marion Scott Real Estate. Now what? Eight Co-op City residents have been diagnosed with Legionnaires' disease — a severe form of pneumonia. That's eight of a total of 12 reported cases in The Bronx since December. NY1 reports that tests on the tower used to cool the massive complex's heating and electrical systems came back positive for the bacteria that causes Legionnaires'. The New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene has "ordered Co-op City officials to decontaminate the towers and shut them down." Meanwhile the New York Daily News reported that RiverBay is "paying a chemical treatment company $200,000 to scrub down the tower." You cannot catch Legionnaires' from person-to-person contact, but rather from inhaling the bacteria. According to the Mayo Clinic, older adults, smokers and people with weakened immune systems are particularly susceptible. Symptoms include headache, muscle pain, chills and a fever of 104 degrees or higher.