By Stephen Linnell
THE number of people who have contracted Legionnaire’s disease from a Hoppers Crossing car wash has increased to seven.
Two more people were diagnosed with the disease last week, according to the Department of Human Services (DHS).
There are no patients currently in hospital.
Officials from DHS closed down The Grand Car Wash in Old Geelong Road after a number of infected patients reported they had visited the premises.
The car wash remains shut and will not reopen for some time as DHS investigators continue to assess the warm water storages at the site.
DHS spokesman Bram Alexander said it was the first recorded instance of a Legionnaire’s disease outbreak at a car wash in Victoria.
“We haven’t had one here and there’s only a few documented cases elsewhere,” Mr Alexander said.
The DHS is continuing to investigate the outbreak and has asked anyone with symptoms including headache, fever, chills, coughs, muscle aches and pains to visit their local doctor.
The legionalla bacteria occurs naturally in the environment, mainly in water and soil.
Its existence can increase markedly in man-made aquatic environments with warm, circulating water, such as air-conditioning cooling towers.
Advice about the disease has been distributed to hospital emergency departments and local GPs.
The risk of contracting the disease increases with age, especially among smokers.
People with chronic medical conditions that weaken the body’s immune system, such as cancer, lung disease, diabetes and transplant recipients, may be at increased risk.
