Selfridge Pinpoints Source Of Legionnaires' Disease

It was July when seven civilian employees were stricken with Legionnaires' disease at the Selfridge Air National Guard base. All have since recovered, and now a cooling tower is being blamed as the source of the disease.

Public Affairs Officer Lt. Anthony Lesterson tells WWJ the base isn't the only place that have had issues with Legionnaires'.

"You also tend to get it in cruise ships, hotels and places like that," Lesterson said.

Lesterson said the affected buildings have been sanitized and deemed safe.

"They cleaned it, they tested it -- all the medical folks -- to determine that there was no longer Legionella in the system. And now, there will be a contract for them to come out to monitor and maintain the cooling towers," he said.

Legionnaires' is a type of pnemonia that can sometimes be deadly, is not spread person to person — but from bacteria in a water vapor or droplet.

Employees will move back into the buildings on September 13th.

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