AAP General News (Australia)
04-28-2000
Vic: Legionnaire s disease victims critically ill
MELBOURNE, April 28 AAP - An elderly man and woman were critically ill in Melbourne
hospitals today after being diagnosed with the potentially deadly Legionnaires' disease.
Spokesmen for the Box Hill and Northern Hospitals said the conditions of the 65-year-old
woman and the 88-year-old man remained unchanged since yesterday.
The two were the most seriously ill of a group of four, who caught the disease after
visiting the new $33 million aquarium in Melbourne's CBD.
About 300,000 people have visited the aquarium since it opened in January.
Department of Human Services spokesman Professor William Hart urged people who visited
the aquarium over the past three weeks to watch out for flu-like symptoms, which could
be the deadly Legionnaires' disease.
The four ill people visited the aquarium on April 13 and 15 during the school holidays
when long queues formed outside the venue, which attracted up to 5,000 visitors a day.
Prime Minister John Howard, his wife Janette, Victorian Opposition leader Denis Napthine
and other senior party figures are among the visitors to the aquarium during the period
when the four victims were infected.
A spokesman for Mr Howard is reported to have said the PM and his wife were well.
Prof Hart said it was possible infection occurred while the victims queued outside
because the air cooling towers were vented externally.
It was unusual for the Legionella infection to develop in such a new venue but it was
sometimes a phenomenon of new buildings, he said.
Melbourne Aquarium had installed and maintained the cooling towers in an "exemplary"
fashion, he said.
However, while a few more cases might emerge, Prof Hart said he did not fear an upsurge of cases.
Tests on the aquarium's cooling towers had not been finalised but they had been disinfected,
he said.
"We now believe that any linkage with the aquarium and cases of Legionnaire's Disease
is over and that the aquarium is a perfectly safe place to be," he said.
The disease causes flu-like symptoms such as headache, fever, chills, muscle aches
and pains followed by respiratory problems and pneumonia over three or four days.
The onset could be up to 10 days after contact with the bacteria.
Prof Hart said Legionnaires' disease was rare in people under 50 unless they had a
depleted immune system.
He reassured parents healthy children were not susceptible to the disease.
"Legionnaires' disease is not a disease of healthy children, so they shouldn't worry,"
Prof Hart told reporters.
Aquarium general manager Bob Adams said he was notified of the problem at noon yesterday
and the venue's 150 staff were alerted.
He did not believe the outbreak would affect visitor numbers because the building was now safe.
"Our ultimate concern is for the health and wellbeing of our visitors and staff," he said.
So far this year, 57 Victorians have contracted Legionnaires' Disease and three have
died compared with 65 cases last year and five deaths.
Prof Hart said the increase in numbers this year was attributed to a new, simple urine test.
Medical advice on the condition is available on 1300 365 677.
AAP lmw/ra/cjh
KEYWORD: LEGIONELLA DAYLEAD
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