Two more Oakland County buildings have tested positive for legionella, a bacteria that can cause respiratory illnesses.
County spokesman Bill Mullan said no cases of legionella-related illness linked to those buildings have been reported.
Tests at the North Oakland Health Center and the Resource and Crisis Center found legionella bacteria at two fixtures in each building.
County health officials emphasize that the risk of contracting a legionella-related illness is low for employees and the public.
Legionella is a naturally occurring bacteria that exists in land and water. It can develop in plumbing systems where fixtures are infrequently used or where the water temperatures are consistently warm and in hot tubs, ultrasonic misters, humidifiers and decorative fountains. In 2025, Oakland County health officials documented 41 cases of Legionnaire’s disease.
The county’s facilities management officials are flushing the buildings’ water systems and installing 0.2-micron filters on all fixtures in each building and will retest the water as required by federal and state standards.
In November, a custodian at the sheriff’s administration building was diagnosed with Legionnaire’s disease, a type of pneumonia, and tests found legionella at about half of that building’s fixtures.
Tests in December found four of 11 fixtures at the courthouse had legionella. A man diagnosed with Legionnaire’s disease in April listed the courthouse as one of the places he’d visited. County Clerk and Register of Deeds Lisa Brown said that man later died. She has criticized the county administration for not testing after his diagnosis and for delays in installing filters in the court house, where her offices are located and frequently visited by the public.
The tests of the incoming water supply at the NOHC and RCC show legionella bacteria developed inside the plumbing rather than being transported to the buildings.
The health center and crisis center buildings are on the county campus at 1200 N. Telegraph Road in Pontiac, between the sheriff’s administration building and the county’s circuit courthouse.
The positive results at the health center were found in the staff-only women’s restroom and in a second-floor men’s restroom.
A fixture in the crisis center’s children-unit lobby tested positive, as did a fixture in a second-floor janitor’s closet.
On Jan. 19, six water samples were collected from health center and five from crisis center. On Tuesday, county officials received results: two positives in health center and two in crisis center. County officials sent alerts to employees and visitors to both buildings.
Mullan said the county’s facilities officials will continue preventive practices across all county buildings, such as flushing the plumbing and monitoring water temperatures, along with routine legionella testing.
On Tuesday, tests were done at the jail, where more than 1,100 people are processed each year, and at Little Oaks, the on-site childcare center. Mullan said results are expected in about two weeks.
People with upper-respiratory illnesses who believe they’ve been exposed may be tested. Legionella doesn’t always cause respiratory illnesses but the bacteria can remain in the body. Legionella can be detected with a urine or blood test. People with questions to call the Oakland Connects Helpline, formerly known as the Nurse on Call line, at (800) 848-5533.