Guggenheim among NYC buildings with Legionella found in cooling towers
New York City health officials on Friday, July 10 identified the Guggenheim Museum as one of 31 Upper East Side properties whose cooling towers produced positive preliminary tests for Legionella bacteria during an investigation into a neighborhood outbreak of Legionnaires' disease.
The museum, located at 1071 Fifth Ave., was listed among buildings where officials said cleaning and disinfection of the cooling tower had already been completed. City leaders emphasized that the PCR screening result does not establish that the museum, or any other listed property, is the source of the outbreak.
The disclosure came as the cluster reached 46 confirmed cases in the Carnegie Hill and Yorkville areas. Twenty-two people remained hospitalized, while the remaining patients had either been discharged or did not require admission. No deaths have been reported.
Investigators are continuing to analyze samples from cooling towers throughout the affected ZIP codes. Additional properties could be identified as testing proceeds, and officials say they expect new cases may still emerge because symptoms can appear up to two weeks after exposure.
Cooling tower response
The city has ordered immediate cleaning and disinfection of every cooling tower with a positive PCR result, a faster approach than waiting for confirmatory culture tests. Those cultures, which take about two weeks to complete, will determine whether live bacteria capable of causing illness were present in the samples.
More than 180 cooling towers have been sampled so far. Health officials said the accelerated remediation effort is intended to reduce any potential risk while the investigation continues.
What to know about Legionnaires' disease
Legionnaires' disease is a form of pneumonia caused by inhaling water droplets containing live Legionella bacteria. Symptoms can include fever, muscle aches, cough, shortness of breath, chest pain, nausea and confusion.
Officials continue to advise that it is safe to drink tap water, shower and use home air conditioners in the affected neighborhoods. Anyone who has lived, worked or visited the area since late June and develops compatible symptoms is urged to contact a healthcare provider promptly.
Reporter Anthony Thompson can be reached at ajthompson@usatodayco.com, or on X @athompsonUSAT
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Guggenheim among NYC buildings with Legionella found in cooling towers
Reporting by Anthony Thompson, USA TODAY / USA TODAY
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This story was originally published July 11, 2026 at 2:22 PM.