A city-wide order has been released in New York mandating that cooling towers be cleaned, most especially in the South Bronx where the Legionnaires' disease outbreak has been tied to.

According to Mayor Bill de Blasio, the cleaning is expected to be completed over the weekend although officials will continue inspecting and disinfecting cooling towers to ensure that the Legionella bacteria is kept at bay. So far, the outbreak seems to have already peaked, what with no new cases reported during the course of the last few days. However, 108 people have already been affected by the outbreak, 18 of which are still in the hospital.

"We have never seen an outbreak of Legionnaires' like this in the history of New York City," said Mayor de Blasio, adding that the threat is also becoming a reality in other cities and the rest of the United States.

Around 2,500 cooling towers are in place in New York's five boroughs and city officials have not previously attempted to keep track of them all. With the pressing need brought about by the outbreak of Legionnaires' disease, the city took advantage of a number of technologies, from online satellite maps to police helicopters, to search for them all. Generally though, cooling towers are situated on rooftops of modern buildings to facilitate air conditioning, ventilation and heating.

Cooling towers from five buildings have been identified as potential points of origin for the spread of the Legionella bacteria while another 161 buildings in South Bronx were tagged as possibly using cooling towers. The city is striving to have all of these remaining buildings checked and disinfected immediately.

Building owners also received notices telling them that they must have cooling towers in their properties cleaned and disinfected in a span of two weeks, if they have not done so already within the last month. Landlords and building managers interested in getting their cooling towers inspected can take advantage of the free Legionella tests the state is offering until October.

The Legionella bacteria spread when it is inhaled through the mist released by cooling towers. City officials, however, have reiterated that bathing and drinking water remain safe throughout New York, as well as using air conditioning units at home.

Photo: Kevin Case | Flickr