\u201cIt\u2019s frustrating because we shouldn\u2019t have to wait for a state senator to formally request information about a major outbreak of a disease like Legionnaires\u2019 in order to get that information,\u201d Smith said. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe Florida Department of Health needs to be more transparent,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
This comes a week after Channel 9 began asking health officials about a possible outbreak, following a Crunch Fitness member\u2019s hospitalization. An official said all cases were linked to gym exposure but did not name any specific facility or location.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think that the more people (my constituents and local residents) know that, at minimum, this is the suspected site of where this Legionnaires\u2019 outbreak has actually initiated and started, that they need to arm themselves with that information so that they can protect themselves and their families,\u201d Smith said.<\/p>\n
Crunch Fitness told Eyewitness News that the Health Department had not informed the business of a \u201cconfirmed link\u201d between their facility and any reported illness,\u201d but \u201cout of an abundance of caution,\u201d it was conducting \u201cthorough water testing\u201d of its pool and spa systems through \u201ccertified third party specialists.\u201d<\/p>\n
We spoke to Dr. Nelson Medina, a board-certified doctor in pulmonary medicine and critical care, about the symptoms to look out for.<\/p>\n
\u201cFever, respiratory problems, and then one of the things that can happen is a lot of nausea and vomiting, and then can come confusion,\u201d Medina said.<\/p>\n
Medina said Legionnaires\u2019 disease does not spread from person to person like other forms of pneumonia; it spreads through water particles. It can be through air conditioning cooling towers on large buildings, showers, or stagnant water.<\/p>\n
Medina said it\u2019s important to know the source of the illness.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have to back trace. And is there is a location now? Are there multiple locations? Could be, but usually it tends to be one place,\u201d Medina said.<\/p>\n
It was Tuesday when Orange County Government first posted on social media of a possible Legionnaires\u2019 disease outbreak. That was nearly a week after Channel 9 began reporting about it, and a week after Webb began asking questions to Florida health officials.<\/p>\n
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