Las Vegas hotel Legionnaires' disease cases under investigation
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The Southern Nevada Health District is investigating cases of Legionnaires’ disease among guests of two Las Vegas hotels.
Two guests who stayed at Caesars Palace and another who stayed at The Orleans Hotel & Casino were diagnosed with the illness, according to Thursday news releases. The disease is caused by Legionella bacteria.
The Caesars Palace customers stayed at the hotel roughly seven months apart in 2022 and 2023, according to a spokesperson for operator Caesars Entertainment.
“Caesars Palace maintains a robust safety program to minimize the potential for the Legionella bacteria to survive in the water systems at its property that meet or exceed industry standards,” the spokesperson told USA TODAY in an emailed statement.
“In addition, we immediately took further steps to remediate the presence of any trace amounts of Legionella bacteria relating to the two instances being investigated by the Southern Nevada Health District,” they added. “We are confident in the integrity of our systems and the safety protocols we rigorously follow.”
While environmental samples from the property previously tested positive for Legionella, it was not detected in the most recent testing, according to SNHD.
The Orleans Hotel & Casino guest was recently identified following an investigation earlier this year after two other confirmed cases of Legionnaires’ disease were reported. Post-remediation testing following those cases did not detect Legionella, but environmental samples have since tested positive.
The hotel is “undergoing remediation and environmental testing to ensure elimination of the bacteria to protect the health and safety of its guests,” SNHD said.
“The health and safety of our guests are extremely important to us, and we have extensive measures in place to minimize risk to our guests,” David Strow, a spokesperson for the hotel’s parent company Boyd Gaming Corporation, said in an emailed statement. Strow said testing did not detect Legionella in the guest’s room, but that the company will continue to cooperate with the investigation.
What is Legionnaires’ disease?
Legionnaires' disease is a "very serious type of pneumonia," according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Water in showers, hot tubs and cooling towers that are part of big air conditioning systems are all common sources of infection.
People usually get infected when they breathe in droplets containing the bacteria after it has gotten into the air. The disease generally does not spread from person to person.
Symptoms may include cough, shortness of breath, headache and fever. The disease can be treated with antibiotics, and while the majority of people diagnosed need to seek medical care in a hospital, they make a full recovery.
"Most healthy people do not get Legionnaires’ disease after being exposed to Legionella," the agency said in a fact sheet. "Being 50 years or older or having certain risk factors can increase your chances of getting sick." Those include smoking – or being a former smoker – having a weakened immune system and having chronic lung disease.
Guests who stayed at Caesars Palace between Aug. 1-23 or the Orleans “dating back to” Aug. 1, and who had symptoms up to 14 days following their visit, can report sickness to the Health District via its website.
Nathan Diller is a consumer travel reporter for USA TODAY based in Nashville. You can reach him at ndiller@usatoday.com.
