New York City is experiencing an outbreak of Legionnaires' disease, a bacterial respiratory infection that has produced 23 confirmed cases and triggered 17 hospitalizations. Health officials have issued public warnings to inform residents and building operators about the outbreak and its transmission methods.

The bacterium has been identified in multiple buildings across Manhattan's Upper East Side, including the Frank Lloyd Wright-designed Guggenheim Museum. Legionnaires' bacteria develop in warm water environments such as cooling tower systems commonly installed in large buildings. Officials emphasised that transmission does not occur through drinking water and that the infection responds well to antibiotic treatment when diagnosed.