'Reopened Schools Find Health Risks, Legionella Bacteria In Water After Covid-19 Lockdowns': NYT
New York Times. 'Reopened Schools Find Health Risks in Water After Covid-19 Lockdowns.' Max Horberry, 8/28/20. - Ed:
The new coronavirus is not the only illness that teachers, students, parents & staff will have to worry about as some schools attempt to reopen this fall. Legionella could lurk in the water supplies of school buildings, & some measures to keep people in schools safe from coronavirus may even increase risks from deadly illnesses caused by the bacteria. Last week in Ohio, officials found Legionella at 5 schools in various towns. On Friday, a district in Pa. also announced it had found Legionella at 4 of its schools. “It is unusual to hear about 9 schools in a one-week period having a detection of Legionella,” said Andrew Whelton, an associate professor of civil, environmental & ecological engineering at Purdue University.
Legionella, usually Legionella pneumophila, is the bacteria that causes Legionnaires’ disease, a respiratory condition. It can form in stagnant water & then disperse through the air & be inhaled when, for example, a shower or tap is turned on. It can be fatal in one in 10 cases. Young children are less at risk of Legionnaires’, but older students, adults & people with compromised immune systems are vulnerable. To protect against the spread of coronavirus, many school buildings have been unoccupied since March. Bathrooms, cafeterias & sports facilities have gone unused. While low occupancy in schools is typical during summer breaks, many are open for summer school & other activities. Experts worry that water was left to stagnate in plumbing during lockdown, & that schools don’t have plans or effective guidance from health authorities for dealing with the effects of prolonged shutdowns..
Precautions that schools may take to limit coronavirus infection risk could also add to Legionella concerns- turning off drinking fountains to prevent oral spread of the virus, or closing off every other sink to ensure social distancing. Some sports facilities also remain closed because of the risk to athletes & coaches. But stagnant water in unused drinking fountains or sink plumbing could be a good reservoir in which the bacteria could grow. Shower heads like those found in locker rooms are common places for Legionella to proliferate.. The CDC has issued guidelines for business & building reopenings after coronavirus lockdowns. A CDC spokeswoman said that its guidelines are “applicable to all types of buildings,” including schools. But the vagueness of many of the guidelines means that schools can do as much or as little of general preventive steps & claim to be compliant.
The usual way to guard against Legionella growth is a process known as flushing. Bringing fresh water into the system keeps a small dose of chlorine in the system, which limits the bacteria’s ability to propagate. But flushing has to be done regularly & for all outlets. That means running every tap, shower & toilet..The only way to tell if flushing is effective is to test the water. Flushing once does not get rid of Legionella if present..There is no requirement that schools test for Legionella. Nor is there a mandate that they report it if they do find it. Health authorities are required to report to the CDC cases of illness caused by Legionella, but not the presence of the bacteria. Some of the schools in both Ohio & Pa. opened to students this week despite being unable to confirm the elimination of Legionella, which can take weeks.
Dr. Whelton said that if more schools tested for the bacteria, more would likely detect the problem. But it remains to be seen how many will choose to do so. “If parents haven’t heard from their schools about whether or not testing is being conducted, then they should start asking questions.”...
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https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/reopened-schools-find-health-risks-in-water-after-covid-19-lockdowns/ar-BB18r3Dx
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- Baltimore Sun, '9 Howard County schools test positive for bacteria Legionella, results show,' Oct. 18, 2019.
https://www.baltimoresun.com/maryland/howard/cng-ho-schools-bacteria-testing-1018-20191018-e2wxgomcevfilawhghmdy2puyq-story.html
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