Health unit wants 11 Orillia cooling towers shut down or cleaned amid Legionnaires' outbreak
Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit (SMDHU) officials have yet to confirm the source of a Legionnaires' outbreak in Orillia but believe cooling towers are to blame.
"We have asked all 11 cooling towers in Orillia to either be shut down or cleaned and disinfected because we think the source is one of them," says SMDHU associate medical officer of health Dr. Colin Lee.
The cooling towers are usually located on top of large buildings.
In Orillia, the cooling tower at Soldiers' Memorial Hospital has been cleaned and disinfected as a safety precaution. It will be one of a few cooling towers to continue operating throughout the winter.
Several other cooling towers, including a couple at local schools, have been shut down for the winter season.
The health unit says the units left operating will be tested periodically over the next few months.
As of Thursday, 27 cases are confirmed, with 10 people hospitalized and two in the intensive care unit.
Most cases are reported in the area west of Lake Simcoe and Lake Couchiching.
"The water aerosols, when they come out of these cooling towers up top, they've been known to infect someone as far as 10 kilometres away, although most are within three kilometres," explains Lee.
Health experts say about 10 per cent of people who become infected will die from the respiratory disease.
The health unit says people should look out for cold and flu-like symptoms that last longer than usual. Any trouble with breathing could also be a sign of Legionnaires' disease. Dr. Lee says if you are concerned, to seek medical advice.
Most people who have tested positive for Legionnaires' disease in Orillia started feeling unwell at the end of September.
With incubation anywhere from two to 10 days, the health unit expects to see more cases this week and next week.
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