New Mexico hotel pool closed after 2 guests contract Legionnaire’s disease

Our friends at USA Today are reporting the Best Western hotel in downtown Socorro, N.M., had to close its pool after health authorities found two people who stayed there contracted Legionnaire’s disease.

While the New Mexico health department continues to investigate whether or not the pool is the source of the problem, it’s important to point out a few things about Legionnaires:

While the cases are rare, they are severe. Legionnaire’s disease is an acute respiratory infection usually contracted from infected water that is breathed in or ingested.

Back in December, the Kimpton’s EPIC hotel in Miami was shut down when the local health department suspected the same type of problem in the hotel’s drinking water. In that case, one of the guests with Legionnaire’s disease had died but in the end, the hotel was given the all-clear by health officials and it was determined that the hotel was not the carrier of Legionnaires.

Meanwhile in New Mexico, the Best Western remains open while its pool and spa areas go through a cleaning process, including a thorough inspection of the hotel’s water system.

[via USA Today]