A sixth person has died from the Legionnaires’ disease outbreak in New York City, according to city health officials.
The latest death came as there have been 111 confirmed cases of the pneumonia-like lung infection across Harlem, with seven people still hospitalized, the New York City Health Department said in an update Thursday. None of the six dead have been identified.
The grim update comes after city officials revealed that 12 cooling towers across five northern Manhattan zip codes — four atop city-owned buildings, including Harlem Hospital — have tested positive for the deadly bacteria since late July.
The cooling towers that tested positive were drained and disinfected — but outraged locals have blasted city officials for not doing enough to prevent the deadly disease.
Rev. Al Sharpton, along with civil rights attorney Ben Crump, filed a lawsuit Wednesday against a construction company that did work in Harlem, including Harlem Hospital, and suggested the city dropped the ball on inspections.
Cooling towers at the hospital filled with rainwater after several July storms — but were left untreated, allowing the bacteria to spread among workers at the site, according to a statement from Sharpton and Crump.
Building owners are required by state law and city health code to test for the disease-causing bacteria Legionella every 90 days to avoid outbreaks.
DOH scientists also separately conduct inspections on cooling towers, typically every year, to ensure they’re adequately disinfected and building owners are regularly testing for Legionella.
Data from the DOH shows that infections have significantly fallen off since Aug. 5.
Acting Health Commissioner Dr. Michelle Morse said Tuesday the city’ efforts to curb the spread of the disease appear to be working.
“Based on epidemiological evidence, remediation efforts have been effective as new cases continue to decrease,” she said in a statement.
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul defended New York City officials’ response to the outbreak earlier this week.
Hochul sidestepped The Post’s questions at an unrelated event this week about whether the cooling towers should be put under stricter inspection rules — and whether harsher penalties are needed for those who shirk the mandated testing.
“I’ll determine the right approach on that if there is a legislative solution,” she said.
“But these happen in communities unexpectedly,” the governor said. “I don’t know how you can prevent it, but monitoring water wells is certainly one path to do that.”
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