Major disease outbreak linked to Atlanta hotel

A major outbreak of Legionnaires’ disease that originated in downtown Atlanta’s Sheraton Hotel could become one of the largest in U.S. history, say officials from the Georgia Department of Public Health.  An outbreak of the bacterial infection, which is essentially a form of severe pneumonia and can be deadly, originated at the Atlanta hotel earlier this month.  It typically spreads as the result of improper hot water heater temperatures or malfunctioning industrial A/C units, which allow Legionella bacteria to grow and spread.  State officials have confirmed 11 cases so far, with an additional  55 “probable’’ cases.  An outbreak at a Philadelphia hotel in the 1970’s killed 29 – the infection is no joke.  For the Sheraton Atlanta and the management that let this occur, the ship is surely SINKING…