Warstein legionella almost always in drinking water

Illness wave in Warstein: Legionella are everywhere in our water

09/14/2013

In recent weeks, numerous people in the Soest area had become infected with legionella. At least two of them died. Legionella are common, but only in large quantities are the bacteria dangerous.

Two deaths
Since 10 August, 165 people in Warstein had been infected with Legionella and were treated. Two of them had to be cared for in the intensive care unit and two men died from the illnesses. Legionellosis is suspected as the reason for another death. For the district of Soest a travel warning was issued at the end of last month, which is valid until 16 September. The crisis team said that the protective measures had not yet been completed.

Cooling systems as Legionella sources
Because the bacteria are transmitted through fine water droplets in the air, air conditioning and refrigeration systems are often the focus of the search, as they represent typical Legionella sources. Epidemiologists would find there in 80 to 90 percent of cases. Fountains or lawn sprinklers are also possible sources. In Warstein, after the illnesses occurred, a reporting obligation for cooling systems was imposed and at the end of August a cooling system was actually tested positive for Legionella.

German Drinking Water Ordinance
Legionella are bacteria that live in the water and occur almost everywhere in our environment. In low concentrations, this is not dangerous for humans. The German Drinking Water Ordinance stipulates a limit of 100 colony-forming units per 100 milliliters of water. If this value is exceeded, the affected system must be examined and samples taken.

Legionella discovery in Warsteiner brewery
In the Soest district so far several Legionellenherde were found. On the one hand there were positive samples from a local cooling system and on the other hand the Legionellenfund in the Warsteiner brewery. The wastewater feed of the brewery to the wastewater treatment plant Warstein had also been contaminated, it was said by a spokesman for the North Rhine-Westphalian Ministry of the Environment. Affected were local sewage treatment plants and the small river Wester, in which the values ​​were even exceeded by a thousand times. In all these places, the same strain of bacteria had been found as the one also found in the patients at Warstein Hospital. „But the chain between sewage treatment plant, brewery, cooling plant and river can still go on. What the original source is is still unclear“, such a Federal Environmental Spokesman.

3,000 deaths every year
Since the microbiological distribution is complicated and difficult to calculate, it is difficult to track the path of bacterial propagation. With a positive Legionellenfund it remains unclear whether with it the source was found or only one link of a chain, which continues to continue. Therefore, it is not clear even in Warstein whether the brewery is the source or whether the treatment plant was possibly polluted by air. The spokesman of the Federal Environment Agency said that another problem is that no one knows where the classic contagion herds are. A directory in which municipalities list all evaporative cooling systems would therefore make sense. This would also speed up the search for Legionella and reduce the number of illnesses. Estimates assume that around 3,000 deaths a year after a Legionella infection in Germany.

Beer not harmful to health
In Warstein, the brewery's recooling plant continues to be monitored by the authorities. The Ministry of Environment has also imposed some special conditions, such as that the clarifiers must be covered and the affected areas disinfected with chlorine-containing substances or UV light. It is only about the sewage system, the beer production does not affect this. The Ministry of Environment emphasizes that the beer is not harmful to health. The brewing process was checked and no Legionella strain was detected.

Legionella do not like colder water
It is still unclear how the germs came into operation. In addition to the measures introduced, the legionella infestation in the river will now also be positively influenced by autumnal temperatures. So said the spokesman for the Federal Environment Agency: „The water is now much colder than in August, the legionella do not like that.“ However, the state of North Rhine-Westphalia has nevertheless prohibited to remove water from the Wester.

No infection from person to person
It was also unclear how infected the infected. The patients would not know each other and a human-to-human infection would be excluded in any case in the case of Legionella. Conjectures are made, such as that the patients previously inhaled water vapor near the affected cooling system as they passed it. In infected persons, non-specific symptoms that can not be clearly attributed to the disease are more likely to show. In the beginning, most patients experience fever and chills - often relatively suddenly. There are also muscle pains, predominantly in the chest area, as well as irritating cough. In the further course, respiratory distress, headache, nausea and vomiting, diarrhea and occasional neurological deficits can be observed.

Always Legionllen in the water
In our water are always Legionella. This is not a problem as long as the bacteria do not find suitable conditions, such as warm temperatures, to multiply. In Germany, there are different rules to prevent Legionella infestation. For example, water reservoirs that hold more than 400 liters must have temperatures of at least 60 degrees Celsius at the storage outlet, because only then will the Legionella be reliably killed in the water. And so that the bacteria do not continue to reproduce, should prevail in the rest of the pipe system at least 55 degrees Celsius. The operators of such large plants are obliged by the Drinking Water Ordinance to check every three years water samples for Legionella and in case of abnormalities, the tenants must be informed.

Do not be afraid of Warsteiner drinking water
The inhabitants of Warstein need not be afraid of their drinking water; it is not affected by the infestation. All known herd are monitored. There is also no danger from food, everything could be eaten safely, since Legionella do not spread about it. In addition, in the water cycle of one- and two-family houses, infestation with these germs is generally rare. Larger systems with longer lines and larger amounts of water in the system are more at risk. The standards that apply to the larger facilities should also be respected in the private sector, for example by setting the boiler to 60 to 80 degrees Celsius. (Ad)