A second person has died in connection with the Legionnaires' disease cluster in the South Bronx, the New York City Health Department confirmed on Thursday, September 17. Thirteen people have now tested positive in parts of Melrose and Morrisania, covering ZIP codes 10451 and 10456.
Health Commissioner Dr. Alister Martin said in a statement reported by ABC7 New York that "we mourn the loss of each New Yorker." He added that all cooling towers that tested positive in initial screening have been disinfected.
For households inside those two ZIP codes, the practical question has shifted. It is no longer mainly about whether contaminated mist is still circulating outdoors. It is about whether an illness that began days ago is being tested for the right thing. Legionnaires' disease is a form of pneumonia, and a clinician will test for it specifically only if there is reason to suspect it.
Two Deaths and Nine Discharges Inside a 13-Case Count
The city's Legionnaires' disease page, last updated on the evening of September 16, breaks the 13 confirmed cases down as follows: two people hospitalized, nine discharged, one who did not need hospital care, and one death. That page had not yet been revised to show the second death when this report was published, so the death toll here reflects the commissioner's Thursday announcement rather than the dashboard.
The gap matters for readers comparing numbers across outlets this week. Case counts and death counts move on different clocks, and the department revises its page as laboratory confirmation catches up.
The city announced the investigation on September 10, when five cases and one death were confirmed. The count rose during the following week to 13, with the second death announced Thursday, as NY1 also reported.
Older Adults, Smokers and People with Chronic Illness Carry the Heaviest Risk
Risk in this cluster is not spread evenly. The Health Department lists the highest-risk groups as adults 50 and older, people who smoke or vape, people with chronic heart, lung, kidney or liver disease or diabetes, and people whose immune systems are weakened by a condition or a medication.
Adults who are otherwise healthy and who breathe in the bacteria usually do not become seriously ill. Most people exposed to Legionella never develop the disease at all, and illness usually follows high or repeated exposure.
The disease does not pass from person to person. The department also says New Yorkers cannot get it from drinking water, cooking, or using air conditioning, because the bacteria do not spread through the cooled air an air conditioner puts out.
Disinfection Is Finished, but the Source Has Not Been Named
Ten buildings in the affected ZIP codes had cooling towers that tested positive on an initial PCR screen, and their owners were ordered to clean and disinfect by September 14. The listed addresses include 820 Concourse Village West, 234 East 149th Street, 1 East 161st Street, which is Yankee Stadium, 470 East 161st Street, and 567 Melrose Avenue, among others.
A PCR screen detects traces of living or dead bacteria. The city is also running culture tests on every sampled tower, which take up to two weeks and confirm whether live bacteria were growing when the sample was collected. Building owners must register towers and test them routinely, and the city publishes cooling tower inspection results searchable by address. Culture results are still pending, and no single tower has been identified as the source.
New diagnoses can still appear after remediation, because symptoms typically begin two to 14 days after exposure. That incubation window, not a failure of the cleaning order, explains why the count kept climbing after the September 14 deadline.
This is the city's second community cluster of the year. The department has concluded its investigation of an Upper East Side cluster that produced 94 cases and 11 deaths, and it never publicly named a source tower there either.
Testing, Care Access and When to Seek Urgent Help
Anyone who lives or works in Melrose or Morrisania, or who visited the area since late August, should contact a health care provider promptly if flu-like symptoms appear. Symptoms include fever, chills, muscle aches, and cough, and can also include headache, fatigue, loss of appetite, confusion, or diarrhea.
Two points make a practical difference. Tell the provider you are worried about Legionnaires' disease, which is the department's own advice, because the test for it is ordered specifically. And go in rather than waiting, since most people recover with early antibiotic treatment.
Residents who need help finding a provider can call 311 or 844-NYC-4NYC regardless of immigration or insurance status. Difficulty breathing, chest pain, sudden confusion or a rapidly worsening fever calls for urgent evaluation rather than a scheduled appointment.
The department says staff have spoken with more than 1,700 community members, handed out more than 4,000 pamphlets and contacted more than 140 organizations. A recorded virtual town hall is posted on the city's Legionnaires' page.
What to watch next: culture results that could identify a source, and whether the case count rises again as the exposure window closes. MedicalDaily will report each confirmed change.
Key Questions Answered
What changed this week? The Health Department confirmed a second death connected to the South Bronx cluster, and the confirmed case count reached 13.
Which areas are affected? Parts of Melrose and Morrisania in ZIP codes 10451 and 10456.
Has the source been found? No. Ten buildings with cooling towers that screened positive were ordered to disinfect, and confirmatory culture results are still pending.
Can it spread between people? No. Legionnaires' disease is contracted by breathing in mist that contains the bacteria, not from another person.
Is tap water safe to use? Health officials say the disease is not spread by drinking water, cooking or using air conditioning.
Who should seek care fastest? Adults 50 and older, people who smoke or vape, people with chronic heart, lung, kidney or liver disease or diabetes, and people with weakened immune systems.
How long should residents stay alert? Symptoms usually start two to 14 days after exposure, so anyone in the area since late August with flu-like symptoms should contact a provider.
