A Legionnaires’ outbreak near Yankee Stadium has sickened 23 people and killed 2

Twenty-three people in the South Bronx have tested positive for Legionnaires’ disease, and two of them have died, according to the New York City Health Department’s latest tally, updated September 28 at 4:45 p.m. The cluster centers on the Melrose and Morrisania neighborhoods, inside the area where the city sampled cooling towers, including one that tested positive for Legionella bacteria at the address of Yankee Stadium.

The count has climbed steadily since the city announced the investigation on September 10 with five cases and one death. Outreach has since widened beyond the first two ZIP codes, and as of the most recent detailed update the department was still waiting on lab results for several towers, including the one at the ballpark. The Yankees say no case has been linked to the stadium.

From five cases to 23 in under three weeks

The Health Department opened its investigation on September 10, when it announced five confirmed diagnoses and one death in ZIP codes 10451 and 10456. By September 18, a second death had been reported and 14 people had tested positive, according to a report published that day.

The department’s current cluster page lists 23 people who have tested positive: two still hospitalized, 16 discharged, three who were never hospitalized, and two deaths. Because Legionnaires’ disease can take up to 14 days to appear after exposure and confirmatory tests take time, the total has kept moving even after the city started treating towers. NY1 reported the same figure of 23 cases and two fatalities on September 24, with three patients hospitalized at that point.

Which cooling towers carry live bacteria

Legionella spreads through water vapor that contains the bacteria, and cooling towers on large buildings are a common suspect because they can release a fine mist into the surrounding air. Unlike a flu or a cold, the infection does not move between people, so investigators work backward from patients’ movements to find the water source. The city sampled all 24 towers in the affected area. On September 12, PCR testing flagged 10 of them, and the city ordered all 10 cleaned and disinfected, the Insurance Journal report said.

PCR only detects bacterial genetic material, so the department followed with culture tests, which show whether the bacteria are alive. Seven buildings came back culture-positive, and the Health Department names them: 567 Melrose Ave., 3339 Park Ave., 820 Concourse Village West, 470 E. 161st St., 890 Washington Ave., 1160 Teller Ave., and 1265 Franklin Ave. Culture results were still pending for towers at Yankee Stadium and NYC Health + Hospitals/Lincoln, plus a third at 1085 Washington Ave., NY1 reported on September 24.

The stadium’s tower and the Yankees’ response

One of the 10 PCR-positive towers sits at 1 E. 161st St., “which is the address of Yankee Stadium,” per the Insurance Journal account. The Bronx Times lists the stadium, Boricua College and Lincoln Hospital among the affected facilities, alongside four towers it did not name.

The Yankees have said publicly that “none of the current Legionnaires’ disease cases in the area has been linked to the stadium.” No source read for this article says the stadium tower has been confirmed to hold live bacteria, and none links a case to the ballpark. The tower falls inside the sampling area the city drew around ZIP codes 10451 and 10456, where the investigation began, which is why the cluster is described as near the stadium rather than tied to it.

What residents and visitors are told to do

Health Commissioner Dr. Alister F. Martin said in the department’s announcement: “Water ecologists have sampled cooling towers in the affected area. Any cooling tower that tests positive will be directed to undergo full cleaning and disinfection immediately.” Building owners with positive results must drain, clean and disinfect their towers, and community outreach with multilingual flyers and town halls began September 11.

For the public, the advice is direct. “Any New Yorkers who currently live or work in this area or people who have visited the area since late August and are experiencing flu-like symptoms, such as fever, cough, or difficulty breathing, should contact a healthcare provider immediately,” the department says. Outreach now covers ZIP codes 10451, 10455, 10456 and 10459, after cases turned up within a few blocks of 10456. Help finding a provider is available at 311 or 844-NYC-4NYC.

The disease does not pass from person to person and is treatable with antibiotics when caught early. People age 50 and older, smokers and vapers, and those with chronic heart, lung, kidney or liver disease, diabetes or weakened immune systems face the highest risk. The Insurance Journal noted that about 10 percent of patients die of the disease.

The South Bronx cluster follows a larger July outbreak on the Upper East Side that produced more than 90 cases and seven deaths. Whether the count stops at 23 depends on the culture results still pending for the stadium and hospital towers, which the department said can take up to two weeks.

This article was produced with the assistance of AI and reviewed by Morning Overview editors prior to publication.