7th lawsuit filed in Legionnaire’s disease outbreak

A seventh negligence lawsuit has been filed against Mount Carmel Health System following an outbreak of Legionnaires’ disease, a severe form of pneumonia, at its Grove City hospital.

Lillian Lyle, 90, of Grove City, was hospitalized May 19-20 for seizures and returned to the hospital on May 29 with chest pain, a cough and weakness, says the lawsuit filed on her behalf Monday in Franklin County Common Pleas Court. She was readmitted with rib fractures and likely pneumonia and diagnosed with Legionnaires’ disease two days later, the suit says.

At least 16 people received the diagnosis in the outbreak at Mount Carmel Grove City hospital. One of the patients, 75-year-old Deanna Rezes of Grove City, died on June 2, and her husband is among those who have filed suits.

The outbreak was announced May 31, just over a month after the sevenfloor, $361 million hospital opened, replacing the former Mount Carmel West hospital.

The legionella bacteria came from the hospital’s hot water system and likely was the result of inadequate disinfection, officials representing the health system have said. Patients who contracted the disease were exposed sometime between April 27 and May 31.

Legionnaires’ disease outbreaks most commonly occur in buildings with complex water systems, including hotels, hospitals and nursing homes. The bacteria that causes the disease can be contracted by breathing in small water droplets. Symptoms include cough, shortness of breath, fever, muscle aches and headaches.