Legionnaires' Disease Lawyers
Are you a victim of Legionnaires' disease?
Contact us. We can help.
What is Legionnaires' disease?
Legionnaires' disease is caused by a type of bacteria called Legionella. Each year, between 8,000 and 18,000 people are hospitalized with Legionnaires' disease in the U.S. Symptoms of Legionnaires' disease are typical of symptoms of pneumonia and can include high fever, chills, cough, muscle aches and headaches. These symptoms generally appear 2 to 14 days after being exposed to the bacteria. Legionnaires' disease can cause death in up to 5% to 30% of cases.
How does someone contract Legionnaires'?
The Legionella bacteria are found naturally in the environment, usually in water. The bacteria grow best in warm water, like the kind found in hot tubs, cooling towers, hot water tanks, large plumbing systems, or parts of the air-conditioning systems of large buildings.
The disease often occurs in hospitals, cruise ships, and air-conditioned hotels, all of which can have air or plumbing systems that breed bacterial infection. A person will generally contract the disease by breathing in the contaminated water in the form of mist or vapor. Unfortunately, people are more susceptible to contracting the disease if they are older and/or have weakened immune systems.
I/My family member has recently contracted Legionnaires' disease. What can I do?
If you or a loved one have recently suffered injury or death as a result of Legionnaire’s disease, you may have a claim for your injuries/loss. If you sustained the illness while a patient in a hospital, traveling on a cruise ship, attending a facility with a whirlpool, sauna, steam room, while staying at a hotel, or from another source, you may be able to recover money damages for your injuries/loss. A claim for damages is based on the obligation of a property owner to maintain and monitor the water system to keep it free from bacteria. If the property owner fails to monitor the water system, it may be held responsible for your injury.
You can learn more about Legionnaires' disease at the Department of Healthand Human Services Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website: http://www.cdc.gov/legionella/patient_facts.htm.
Contact Us
For more information about whether you have a claim for an injury or for the wrongful death of a family member, or to discuss how Frier Levitt, LLC can help you, please call us at (973) 618-1660, or toll-free at (888) LEVITT1 (i.e., 888-538-4881). You can also write to us using our contact form.
We look forward to hearing from you.