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This summer, The Bronx was hit by an outbreak of Legionnaires' Disease, killing 12 people and making more than 100 people sick.
Legionnaires' disease was discovered after men at an American Legion convention in 1976 in Philadelphia became sick with the disease when the cooling tower was infested with legionella bacteria.
"It affects people's respiratory systems," Bud Hammer, president of Atlantic Westchester, a commercial and industrial HVAC business, said. "It can typically turn into pneumonia. It can be stopped by disinfecting a cooling tower with bleach. The disinfection kills the bacteria.
People contract the legionnaire's disease by breathing in the bacteria. Hammer said building owners need to have a professional water treatment company come and clean their cooling owners.
"There is a lack of knowledge or lack of willingness to spend to properly maintain buildings," Hammer said. "There have been a lot of shortcuts from people being cheap or ignorant.
A water treatment company should be licensed and have credentials, Hammer said.
Robert Morris, director of environmental health for Putnam County, said they have contacted all buildings with cooling systems.
"There have been no problems in the county," Morris said. "There have been no Putnam County residents exposed to date. We were proactive in getting that information out quickly.
Morris said they located nine cooling towers in Putnam.
"We're in the process of putting together the information so they understand what the emergency regulations are," Morris said. "We want them registered before Sept. 16."
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