NYC mayor demands cooling tower regulations in wake of deadly Legionnaires' outbreak

Cooling towers of an air conditioning system

(Image credit: JACQUES DEMARTHON/AFP/Getty Images)

last updated 5 August 2015

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio mandated citywide inspections of water-cooling towers after they were determined to be the cause of an outbreak of Legionnaires' disease in the city's South Bronx neighborhood. De Blasio additionally vowed to propose new regulations to prevent future outbreaks.

Since July 10, 86 people have fallen ill with Legionnaires' disease, a severe form of pneumonia that is contracted by breathing in moist air infected with the bacteria; of 17 towers tested by city health officials, five in the South Bronx tested positive for Legionella bacteria. Seven people have died since the outbreak began.

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Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.

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