Five people have now died in the Upper East Side Legionnaires' outbreak, and the widow of 88-year-old Air Force veteran Robert Goldstein says she will sue once officials match a patient's strain to a contaminated cooling tower.
Eighty-two cases have been confirmed, with eight people still hospitalized, 53 discharged and 12 not requiring hospitalization, as health officials continue trying to identify the exact source.
Thirty-four cooling towers initially tested positive for live Legionella and have been cleaned and disinfected; nine towers tested negative, and results from another 140 towers are expected within a week.
Julie Menin and Lynn Schulman accused the Mamdani administration of poor communication and understaffing, citing 23 vacant water-ecology positions and delayed hiring of inspectors.
Mayor Zohran Mamdani and the Health Department say they moved faster than past protocol by opening the investigation after two confirmed cases on July 2, while Menin plans a bill and a September oversight hearing.