About a month after an outbreak of Legionnaires disease hit New York City, New York Gov. Governor Kathy Hochul has signed legislation strengthening regulations on cooling tower inspections aimed at preventing future public health hazards.
The new law requires that owners and operators of cooling towers in New York City certify that their cooling towers have been inspected, tested, cleaned, and disinfected in compliance with the New York City Administrative Code.
The legislation sets timelines for building owners to notify the New York City Department of Buildings (NYC DOB) and take steps to remedy any public health hazards in cooling towers. The new law also increases civil penalties on building owners who fail to report or address these issues.
Cooling towers can be the source of bacterial outbreaks such as Legionnaires disease, which causes flu-like symptoms and can be fatal.
During the Legionnaires outbreak that began in early July in New York City’s Upper East Side, there were 92 reported cases of people testing positive and seven deaths.
In its remediation efforts, the city tested 183 cooling towers at 160 buildings for Legionella bacteria. Of those, 59 cooling towers at 58 buildings tested culture positive, confirming the presence of live Legionella bacteria. All have been cleaned and disinfected. In total, 124 cooling towers tested culture negative.
By July 23, the city’s health commissioner said he believed the source of the exposure had been eliminated as a result of the city’s testing and disinfection efforts.
“Recent outbreaks of Legionnaires’ disease underscore the urgency of certification requirements, and we look forward to working with the City to ensure New Yorkers are protected against these public health threats,” Hochul said.
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said the city wants to prevent outbreaks before they happen by holding building owners accountable for maintaining their cooling towers.
Mamdani said the city already has strong regulations requiring regular inspections, maintenance and testing to stop Legionella bacteria from spreading. “Every year, we hold owners accountable with hundreds of thousands of dollars in fines, and we welcome any opportunity to strengthen these protections even further,” he added.
The legislation (S08472-A/A09058A) will require biannual certifications taking place in January and July of each year or by dates specified by NYC DOB. In addition, it clarifies that the building owner must take steps to address maintenance deficiencies as soon as possible but no later than 48 hours, and must notify NYC DOB and take steps to address levels of microbes that present a serious health threat as soon as possible but no later than 24 hours.
It also increases civil penalties for violations to $2,500 for a first violation, $7,000 for a second or subsequent violation, and up to $12,500 for a violation that results in a fatality or serious injury.
Last summer, an outbreak of Legionnaires’ disease in the Central Harlem neighborhood led to at least six deaths and more than 100 diagnosed cases. The bacteria was discovered in 12 cooling towers on 10 buildings.
The site of this summer’s outbreak, the Upper East Side, has more than three times the number of cooling towers tested during the Central Harlem investigation.
Legionnaires’ disease is caused by Legionella bacteria that grow in warm water. The disease spreads through water vapor that contains the bacteria. It is a type of pneumonia that causes flu-like symptoms, including fever, chills, muscle aches, and cough.
Topics New York
Was this article valuable?
Here are more articles you may enjoy.
Allstate Introduces Large Language Model, ALLIE 
CBIZ Brokerage to Be Spun Off, Backed by Private Equity, After $5B Grant Thornton Deal 
American Family to Acquire Bowhead Specialty in $1.2B Cash Deal 
Chipwich Maker Withdraws Lawsuit Against Insurance Agency 
