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New Hampshire resort hot tub believed to be source of Legionella exposure that left 1 dead, another hospitalized

Legionella bacteria was detected in a Whitefield, N.H resort's hot tub. No other cases have been reported, and the bacteria was not found in the resort’s water system.

One person is dead and another was hospitalized after staying at a resort in New Hampshire. Courtesy of Google Maps

January 18, 2024

1 minute to read

A resort hot tub in New Hampshire has been identified as the probable source of two cases of Legionnaires’ disease, the state’s health department confirmed. One person died and another was hospitalized after being diagnosed in the fall of 2023.

New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services said that two out-of-state visitors both went into the hot tub at the Mountain View Grand Resort & Spa in Whitefield, N.H. last month. The person who was hospitalized has since been released.

WCVB-TV reported that the woman who died was a 71-year-old Massachusetts resident and the person hospitalized was from Rhode Island. Barbara Kruschwitz from Merrimac died a week after her stay in October, her husband told the news station.

The department said that after an investigation, Legionella bacteria was detected in the resort hot tub, which is currently closed. No other cases have been reported, and Legionella bacteria was not found in the resort’s water system.

Legionella, found in mist and water droplets, is a bacteria that can cause Legionnaires’ disease when breathed in, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The serious pneumonia kills one in 10 people.

Mountain View Grand Resort & Spa confirmed that a trace level of Legionella bacteria was detected in the hot tub’s filter. The resort “drained, closed, and eliminated the hot tub,” and there are no plans to re-open it.

“It is unclear at this time, and may never be known, if the trace amounts of Legionella were of the same bacterium that led to the illness of two former guests,” the resort said in a statement. “The indoor hot tub, when operational, was a self-contained system and the trace amount of Legionella was isolated from the rest of the property.”

This article was updated to include a statement from Mountain View Grand Resort & Spa.