Reduce the risk

Legionnaires' disease is a potentially fatal form of pneumonia caused by the bacterium Legionella Pneumophila. Its symptoms include high fever, chills, headache and muscle pain, with many patients also experiencing difficulty breathing. Though many who contract the disease may experience only flu-like symptoms, the disease is particularly dangerous to 'at risk' groups including the elderly and those with suppressed immune systems or some other form of underlying disease.

According to the Health and Safety Executive statistics, on average there are approximately 200-250 reported cases of Legionnaires' disease each year in the UK, with a fatality rate somewhere in the region of 12 per cent. While these figures may be concerning enough in themselves, there is evidence to suggest that the total number of cases each year may be generally underestimated, with many cases going unreported, or where no source of infection can be traced.

While the Legionnaires' disease is completely preventable, lack of awareness and training, inadequate control measures and management failures have all contributed to the deaths we regularly see reported in the news.