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Office workers recover from disease outbreak

Wednesday, 16 July 2008

The two office workers in Dublin who were hospitalised after they contracted the potentially fatal Legionnaires’ Disease are recovering from their ordeal this week. The first case that was diagnosed on June 28 and was followed by a second on Monday (July 7) and prompted an immediate health investigation. It is suspected that the two Allianz staff members contracted the disease from a cooling tower at the insurance company’s headquarters on Merrion Road. The HSE and the Health And Safety Authority were notified while tests conducted by the Allianz health and safety team found that the cooling tower, used as part of the company's air conditioning system, harboured high levels of Legionella bacterium. Upon confirmation of the tests, the cooling towers, located in the building’s basement car park, were immediately shut down and emergency cleaning and disinfection procedures carried out.  The two office workers, one of whom is in his late 40s and the second in his mid 50s, were taken to the Mater Hospital for treatment. One of the workers has since been released from hospital after being given the all clear. Five other Allianz employees who came forward for screening at St Vincent’s Hospital tested negative for the disease. The HSE said that it was fully satisfied that Allianz had taken all necessary steps to address the outbreak at its offices through its testing and reporting procedures. Meanwhile, Allianz said that it will continue to monitor the situation and keep all employees informed of any further developments. Managers have been asked to contact staff who were out of the office to make them aware of the next steps to take if they have any concerns or queries. Legionnaires’ Disease is a type of pneumonia, which can be very serious. Signs can include a high fever, chills and a cough. The disease is not passed from person to person but is spread through the air from a water source. The rate of Legionnaires’ Disease in Ireland is much lower than in the rest of Europe, according to Health Protection Surveillance Centre statistics. The disease occurs in around 3.8 people out of every million in the State, compared to 11.2 per million in Europe. Between 2000 and 2007, 67 cases of Legionnaires’ Disease were reported in Ireland, as well as five deaths. The average age of those affected was 48.