Legionnaires Disease Outbreak in North Portland
PORTLAND, Ore. — A rare disease is breaking out again at a low income senior residential building. About 80 people are being asked to leave their homes.
Marilyn Hassan does not want to leave her home at Rosemont Court.
“This is my neighborhood. This is my bus stop. I know my neighbors. I laugh and dance with my Walkman. We’re close here.”
She and others tell our news partner KGW they’re hesitant to move from a community they’ve had for decades and they can’t afford more expensive housing elsewhere. This comes after the Multnomah County Health Department tacked letters on their doors October 1st and 8th, reporting a new case of a resident getting sick with Legionnaires Disease. It’s a lung infection similar to pneumonia. People catch it by breathing in bacteria and it spreads in water.
The county and management are urging Rosemont Court residents to permanently relocate despite efforts to find the source of the bacteria. There have been outbreaks at the North Portland building throughout this year, and efforts to find and eliminate it since January.
