Tests from 11 areas in Oakland County’s circuit courthouse have shown at least four sites with legionella, according to county officials.
Positive results were found in two men’s restrooms and two cafeteria sinks.
Legionella is a bacteria that causes a type of pneumonia called Legionnaire’s disease or a less-serious respiratory illness called Pontiac fever.
Tests at the courthouse, 1200 N. Telegraph Road in Pontiac, were done on the heels of testing at the sheriff’s administration building in Pontiac after a custodian fell ill with Legionnaire’s.
Tests were ordered for all county buildings, starting with the courthouse. Test results take about two weeks. County officials received the courthouse results just before Christmas.
Kathy Gray, a county spokeswoman, confirmed that 11 locations inside the courthouse were tested. The four areas with positive results for legionella included two men’s restrooms, on the first and third floors and two cafeteria sinks that are not publicly accessible.
The cafeteria is in the courthouse’s basement and is closed until Jan. 5, Gray said.
The courthouse was closed on Wednesday and Thursday but open on Friday. Gray said it’s unclear how many people were working Friday, as many had taken the day off.
The county’s priority, she said, was notifying employees, flushing the water systems and installing filters that would prevent the bacteria from exiting the plumbing.
“Any areas they can’t get to today will be temporarily closed,” she said. The county’s elected officials were alerted Friday morning and the county notified employees after that, she said.
She said follow-up tests in the sheriff’s administration building showed no signs of legionella.
“They will continue periodically testing over there,” she said.
More county buildings will be tested but county officials have not shared the schedule or other details.
One person diagnosed with Legionnaire’s disease in April told health officials he had visited the county courthouse but Gray that his illness has not been directly linked with the county building.
The county has not released conditions on the custodian or the man who visited the courthouse in April.
Joe Rozell, UAW Local 889’s first vice president works in the courthouse and said he talked with county labor-relations officials about employee safety.
“The county plans to flush the courthouse water system and are installing filters now,” he said in a text message to The Oakland Press Friday. “This validates the union’s position that testing and remediation must continue for all buildings in which our members are present. The safety of our members is and always will be paramount.”
Legionella can develop in soil particles or little-used water systems and travel in microscopic water droplets. Some people who inhale the mist can develop Legionnaire’s or Pontiac fever. People with compromised immune systems are more likely to be infected. Legionnaire’s cannot be transmitted from one person to another.
Symptoms can include cough, fever, headaches, muscle aches and shortness of breath and sometimes confusion, diarrhea or nausea.
County Commission Chairman Dave Woodward and minority caucus leader Mike Spisz did not respond to questions from The Oakland Press.