Personal Injury and Wrongful Death

Legionnaires' Disease Associated with a Hotel

Attorney Fred Pritzker has successfully represented victims of Legionnaires' disease outbreaks associated with hotels. He has been interviewed and quoted by The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, Lawyers USA and other publications. To contact a Legionnaires' disease lawyer, please call 1-888-377-8900 (toll-free), email Attorney Fred Pritzker, or sumbit our free case review form.

Possible Legionnaires' Disease Outbreak Associated with the EPIC Hotel in Miami, Florida

Health officials are investigating a possible Legionnaires' disease outbreak associated with the EPIC hotel in Miami, Florida. The possible outbreak involves three former guests of the hotel:

One former guest died at the end of October from Legionnaires' while on a cruise. His death occurred about three months after leaving the hospital.
Two former guests became will with Legionnaires' disease in November.

Investigators found the hotel installed a water filter powerful enough to remove chlorine from its city-supplied water, encouraging bacterial growth.

Legionnaires' disease is a severe form of pneumonia caused by Legionella, a bacteria first discovered in 1976 during an outbreak of pneumonia at an American Legion convention. According to the CDC, each year, between 8,000 and 18,000 people are hospitalized with Legionnaires' disease in the United States.

Unlike other water-borne pathogens, Legionnaires' disease can be transmitted by breathing in mist containing Legionella bacteria. At a hotel, that can happen in a shower, at faucets, in whirlpools or swimming pools or via cooling towers in air conditioning systems.

Finding Evidence to Prove the Hotel Water Water was the Source of the Legionnaires' Disease Outbreak

Visual Inspection of the Hotel
Often a health official will visually inspect various parts of hotel, including hot water heaters, storage tanks, cooling towers, whirlpool spas, decorative fountains and potable water systems.

Testing for Legionella Bacteria at the Hotel
If a determination is made to test the hotel water systems for the presence of Legionella, samples are usually taken from the hotel’s cooling tower, whirlpool spa and spa filters, water heaters, hot water storage tanks, and sinks and showers where the people who were diagnosed with Legionnaires’ disease stayed.

The Legionnaires' Disease tests determine if there is Legionella and the species of Legionella, for example Legionella pneumophila. Further testing can determine the serotype of the species. For example, Legionella pneumophila has 15 serogroups. Even more testing can determine the specific molecular subtype of serogroup. If the people sickened were diagnosed with Legionnaires’ by the culture method, tests can be done to determine if the Legionella that sickened them has the same molecular subtype as the Legionella found in the hotel.

The results of these tests can be used as evidence in a lawsuit against the hotel.

Epidemiological Investigation
Cases of Legionnaires’ disease can be connected to each other and a hotel if all of the people sickened stayed at the same hotel at about the same time and they all presented with signs and symptoms of Legionnaires’ within about 14 days (more in some cases) of staying at the hotel.

Epidemiological findings can also be used as evidence in a lawsuit against the hotel.

Contact our law firm for Legionnaires' lawsuit information: 1-888-377-8900 (toll free), email Attorney Fred Pritzker or submit our online form for a free consultation.

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