NYC facing 4 lawsuits over deadly Legionnaires' outbreak in Central Harlem
Families sue NYC over deadly 2025 Harlem legionnaires' outbreak
Civil rights attorney Ben Crump and Rev. Al Sharpton have announced new lawsuits against New York City, NYC Health + Hospitals, and private maintenance contractors regarding the deadly Legionnaires' disease outbreak in Central Harlem last summer.
NEW YORK - New York City is facing four lawsuits related to a deadly Legionnaires' disease outbreak in Harlem, on the heels of a more-recent cluster on the Upper East Side.
What we know:
Attorney Ben Crump announced litigation against the City of New York, NYC Health + Hospitals, and private contractors Thursday after seven people died and 118 were sickened in the July 2025 outbreak in Central Harlem.
Legionella bacteria was traced to cooling towers in the neighborhood, including at Harlem Hospital and the New York City Public Health Lab on West 137th Street.
Upper East Side no longer at elevated risk for Legionnaires' disease, NYC health commissioner says
The NYC Health Department gave an update Friday on the Legionnaires' disease cluster on the Upper East Side, following the death of a seventh patient.
Dig deeper:
The lawsuits filed by Crump, a civil rights and personal injury attorney, claim the city failed to properly test, treat and maintain the cooling towers, allowing dangerous Legionella bacteria to thrive and spread.
Plaintiffs also allege failures to comply with state and city cooling tower regulations, and to warn the public of the danger.
The suits are seeking damages for wrongful death, severe personal injury, economic loss, emotional distress and negligence, Crump's office said.
WASHINGTON, DC - SEPTEMBER 16: Attorney Benjamin Crump (C) gestures as he speaks at a news conference on the 2016 fatal police shooting of Terence Crutcher an unarmed Black man, on September 16, 2021 in Washington, DC. During the news conference, hel
What they're saying:
Impacted victims and their families joined Crump at a news conference announcing the lawsuits at the National Action Network House of Justice in Harlem.
"The genetic identity of the bacteria that was found in the cooling towers in the Harlem Hospital and the New York City Public Health Laboratory had the same genetic-identified bacteria that were in some of our clients who died. That is very significant," Crump said.
Crump's firm is representing six of the seven patients who died.
Local perspective:
During the news conference, Crump commended Mayor Zohran Mamdani's handling of the recent Legionnaires' outbreak on the Upper East Side, but he called on the city to properly resolve the case with the Harlem families.
The Upper East Side outbreak was declared over last week. Seven people died, and 92 were sickened in total.
The Source: This article includes information from Attorney Ben Crump's office.