Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Fifth death in Central Harlem linked to Legionnaires' disease
By
Arun Venugopal
Published Aug 18, 2025
Modified Aug 19, 2025
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
Education Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images
By
Arun Venugopal
Published Aug 18, 2025
Modified Aug 19, 2025
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
The Legionnaires’ disease outbreak in Central Harlem has been linked to a fifth death, the city health department said Monday, equaling the toll from an outbreak at a nursing home in 2022.
William Fowler, a spokesperson for Mayor Eric Adams, said the latest casualty was not a new death. Rather, it stemmed from investigators' conclusively linking an earlier death to the disease. The city said 108 people had been sickened, up from 101 reported on Friday, and 14 remained hospitalized.
The update follows word from the city last week that 12 water cooling towers in Central Harlem, scattered across 10 properties, had tested positive for Legionella, the bacterium that causes Legionnaires’ disease, a severe form of pneumonia. Legionella is spread by water droplets and vapors from contaminated water towers.
Several of the properties are connected with government operations, including Harlem Hospital, at 506 Lenox Ave., the city disclosed on Thursday.
Among the 10 locations, all but one had cooling towers that were either behind on required Legionella testing or had not been inspected by the city in the past year, according to a Gothamist analysis of city data.
The city said Monday that all 12 towers had been remediated. The officials have not yet stated whether bacteria discovered at those towers had been linked to the ongoing infections. Acting Health Commissioner Dr. Michelle Morse said in a statement that the city was still awaiting the results of DNA sequencing. She said the fifth Legionnaires' death occurred "before mid-August."
Jory Lange, a lawyer who said he represents 37 people who have contracted the disease in the current outbreak, called the death toll “shocking.”
“The building owners need to be held to account for this,” Lange said. “Legionnaires’ disease is completely preventable. None of this had to happen.”
City officials said last week that the outbreak was on the wane, though they expected new illnesses to be reported as people became aware of the outbreak and sought medical treatment.
The city passed a law in 2015 requiring all building owners to register their water cooling towers, and to put in place a maintenance plan to prevent and control the growth of Legionella and inspect and test cooling towers at least every three months.
The regulatory changes came after the worst outbreak in city history that year sickened more than 130 people and caused 16 deaths. In the 2022 outbreak, five people also died. Each year, on average, hundreds of cases of Legionnaires’ disease are reported. Last year, 257 New Yorkers were diagnosed with the disease. In 2018, the number topped 650.
This article was updated with additional information from the city.
Tagged
Health and Science
Race And Justice Unit
harlem
new york city
Arun Venugopal
Arun Venugopal is a senior reporter for the WNYC and Gothamist Race & Justice Unit who focuses on issues of race and bias in our region. His reporting also tackles the topics of immigration, faith, and inequality. Arun serves as the regular fill-in host of the station's "U.S. of Anxiety" program. Arun was the creator and host of Micropolis, a series about race and identity. He is a contributor to NPR's Morning Edition and All Things Considered. He has appeared on PBS Newshour, On the Media and Studio 360, and has been published in The Guardian, The Wall Street Journal and Salon. He also frequently serves as an emcee and moderator of panel discussions on race, religion, and identity issues and has been a guest host of NPR's "Fresh Air." He lives with his family in Queens.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Dump truck driver hits and kills cyclist on 34th Street in Midtown, NYPD says
It's the latest in a string of hit-and-run deaths in the city in recent months.
By
Liam Quigley
Published Sep 28, 2026 at 4:15 p.m. ET
New ingredient mandated for Latin American kitchen, restaurant plates in NJ
The Garden State now requires that corn masa dough and flour made and sold in the state be fortified with folic acid.
By
Arya Sundaram
News
New ingredient mandated for Latin American kitchen, restaurant plates in NJ
The Garden State now requires that corn masa dough and flour made and sold in the state be fortified with folic acid.
By
Arya Sundaram
A Brooklyn jail cell filled with smoke. The emergency button failed, a lawyer said.
By
Samantha Max
Crews launch tunnel machines to dig first new Hudson River rail tunnels since 1910
By
Michael Sol Warren
NYC nor’easter dries up after weather service reports minor flooding
By
Ramsey Khalifeh
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .