Browsing: Yankee Stadium

NYC finds Legionella DNA in Yankee Stadium cooling tower

New York City health officials detected Legionella DNA in a Yankee Stadium cooling tower during an investigation into a South Bronx outbreak. The city had confirmed 11 Legionnaires’ disease cases by Tuesday night. One person died, while three patients remained hospitalized. The New York City Health Department found preliminary positive PCR results in 10 of 24 cooling towers sampled across ZIP codes 10451 and 10456. The affected area includes parts of the Melrose and Morrisania neighborhoods. Health officials tested cooling towers while tracing possible environmental sources of the infections. PCR testing can identify genetic material from Legionella bacteria, but it does not establish whether the bacteria remain alive. Culture testing can determine whether viable bacteria are present, and officials said that laboratory process can take up to two weeks.