1 dead, 3 hospitalized in Portland Legionnaires’ disease outbreak

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Health officials say an outbreak of Legionnaires’ disease at a Portland apartment complex has killed one person and sickened three others.

Multnomah County health officials said Tuesday they told over 100 residents of Rosemont Court to leave after residents contracted pneumonia.

The Oregonian/OregonLive reports the health department said experts linked the outbreak Monday to the apartment’s water system.

County officials are cleaning the building’s plumbing system to remove any remaining traces of Legionella, the bacteria that causes the disease.

Multnomah County spokeswoman Julie Sullivan-Springhetti said residents were staying in Portland-area hotels while health officials investigate the outbreak source.

People can contract the disease when they breathe in very small droplets of water with the bacteria. Most exposed to it don’t get sick but some people can contract severe pneumonia. Symptoms include fever, fatigue, muscle aches and headache. More serious symptoms include cough and chest pain. The disease is not spread person to person.