The 2014 Portugal legionellosis outbreak was an outbreak of

legionellosis Legionnaires' disease is a form of atypical pneumonia caused by any species of ''Legionella'' bacteria, quite often '' Legionella pneumophila''. Signs and symptoms include cough, shortness of breath, high fever, muscle pains, and headaches. Naus ...

in multiple cities of the

Lisbon Lisbon (; pt, Lisboa ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 544,851 within its administrative limits in an area of 100.05 km2. Grande Lisboa, Lisbon's urban area extends beyond the city's administr ...

district in

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...

, caused by the release of

Legionella ''Legionella'' is a genus of pathogenic gram-negative bacteria that includes the species '' L. pneumophila'', causing legionellosis (all illnesses caused by ''Legionella'') including a pneumonia-type illness called Legionnaires' disease and a mil ...

bacteria from the cooling towers of a fertilizer plant in

Forte da Casa Forte da Casa is a town and former civil parish in the municipality of Vila Franca de Xira, Portugal. Since 2013, it is part of the civil parish Póvoa de Santa Iria e Forte da Casa. Its population in 2011 was 11,056 in an area of 3.96 km2. ...

Vila Franca de Xira Vila Franca de Xira () is a city and municipality in the Lisbon District in Portugal. The population in 2021 was 137,659, in an area of 318.19 km2. Situated on both banks of the Tagus River, 32 km north-east of the Portuguese capital L ...

. It began on 7 November 2014 and affected mostly people in

Póvoa de Santa Iria Póvoa de Santa Iria is a city and former civil parish in the municipality of Vila Franca de Xira, Portugal. Since 2013, it is part of the civil parish Póvoa de Santa Iria e Forte da Casa. Its population in 2011 was 29,348. History In 1336, t ...

, Forte da Casa and Vialonga, in the municipality of Vila Franca de Xira.

Paulo Macedo Paulo Macedo a Portuguese business manager and is the CEO of Caixa Geral de Depósitos since 2017. He was the Portuguese Health Minister from 2011 to 2015 and general director of taxes and chairman of the Fiscal Administration Board (2004–2007) ...

, the Portuguese Health Minister, declared the outbreak extinct on 21 November. The outbreak resulted in 375 cases and 12 casualties.

Timeline

On 7 November 2014, authorities were alerted about an unusually large number of patients infected with Legionella: in 24 hours, the

hospital received 27 patients with this infection and there were six more cases in other hospitals in Lisbon. The patients were from

, Vialonga, in Vila Franca de Xira, and also from Bucelas, Loures and Samora Correia, Benavente. The municipality of Vila Franca de Xira promptly asserted that tests carried out by the municipal water and sanitation authority (SMAS) did not find any evidence of Legionella in the tap water. By midday on 8 November, there were already 59 known cases. At the end of the same day, there were 90 known cases of Legionella infections, including 1 fatality. Authorities stated that the first fatality was a 59-year-old male that was a heavy smoker and died 3 hours after arriving at the hospital. On 9 November, the number of cases was updated to 120. Two more people, a 66-year-old male and an 81-year-old female, both with preexisting conditions, died in the hospital, raising the number of fatalities to 3. 6 more people were in critical condition. In the afternoon, the number of cases was reported to be 180 and 4 fatalities. 24 people are in the intensive care unit. On 11 November, the

World Health Organization The World Health Organization (WHO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for international public health. The WHO Constitution states its main objective as "the attainment by all peoples of the highest possible level of h ...

declared the Legionella outbreak in Portugal a major public health emergency. On 12 November, there were 302 known cases and 7 fatalities related to this outbreak, with 49 people in intensive care units and two more deaths under investigation. Cases in

Luanda Luanda () is the capital and largest city in Angola. It is Angola's primary port, and its major industrial, cultural and urban centre. Located on Angola's northern Atlantic coast, Luanda is Angola's administrative centre, its chief seaport ...

Angola , national_anthem = " Angola Avante"() , image_map = , map_caption = , capital = Luanda , religion = , religion_year = 2020 , religion_ref = , coordina ...

and

Lima Lima ( ; ), originally founded as Ciudad de Los Reyes (City of The Kings) is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón River, Chillón, Rímac River, Rímac and Lurín Rivers, in the desert zone of t ...

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal , national_motto = "Fi ...

were suspected to be connected to the outbreak. On 13 November, there were 311 cases and 7 fatalities. The two cases that had been observed abroad were found to be unrelated to this outbreak. On 17 November, there were 331 cases and 8 fatalities. On 21 November, there were 336 cases and 10 fatalities. The outbreak was declared to be over. On 4 December, a 43-year-old man died from Legionella, raising the number of fatalities to 11.

Sources

A total of 20 locations were examined on 8 November. Another 5 locations, 4 factories and 1 hotel, were examined on 9 November. On 11 November,

Solvay Solvay may refer to: Companies and organizations * Solvay Brussels School of Economics and Management, Brussels, Belgium * Solvay Conference, founded by Ernest Solvay, deals with open questions in physics and chemistry * Solvay Indupa, an Argen ...

confirmed that the first results from their factory in

came positive for Legionella, but the results of more comprehensive tests, done at Ricardo Jorge National Health Institute (INSA) were not available yet. These tests included samples from other factories in the region, such as Adubos de Portugal (ADP) and

Central de Cervejas Sociedade Central de Cervejas (SCC; full name: SCC – Sociedade Central de Cervejas e Bebidas, S.A.) is a Portuguese brewery, founded in 1934. Its main output is the Sagres brand of beers. The company has been controlled by Heineken since Ap ...

. Later on the same day, it was also reported that the ADP factory would be further investigated. It was expected that the new investigation would shed some light on whether there was criminal activity behind the outbreak. On 21 November, it was confirmed that the ADP factory was the source of the outbreak.

Prevention measures

Authorities recommended people to avoid taking showers and using high-pressure water sources as well as avoiding air-conditioning devices and places where airborne water particles are present. Blood donations in some parts of the affected district were halted.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Portugal legionellosis outbreak, 2014 2014 in Portugal 2014 disease outbreaks Legionellosis Disease outbreaks in Portugal November 2014 events in Europe 2014 disasters in Portugal