Legionella Found in NJ….Again

In New Jersey, officials have found Legionella in the water at the Northern State Prison in Newark. The bacteria (legionella pneumophila) was found in one of the prison’s medical buildings. It was reported that once this Legionella bacteria was found in their water, the inmates were relocated to an area that had not been affected by this bacteria.

Legionella causes Legionnaire’s disease, a form of pneumonia particularly dangerous for people with a compromised immune system. This is especially problematic due to that fact that inmates typically have more health problems than the general public. Fortunately, at this time there have been no Legionella related deaths at the prison.

Legionnaire’s bacteria and their associated human respiratory infections have also surfaced behind bars in recent years in California and Florida

This begs the question, when will New Jersey implement regulations to help safeguard the public against contracting Legionairres disease unnecessarily. IMPORTANT: NYC has already implemented some form of protection against Legionairres disease by putting into city record a regulation for cooling tower water systems and domestic water tanks.