Staten Island Legionnaires’ Disease Lawyer
Helping Staten Island Victims Recover After Preventable Legionnaires’ Disease
Building owners throughout Staten Island have a responsibility to maintain safe water systems. Apartment buildings, hospitals, nursing homes, hotels, schools, office buildings, and commercial properties often rely on complex plumbing systems, cooling towers, hot water tanks, and other water infrastructure that require regular inspection and maintenance. When these systems are neglected, Legionella bacteria can multiply and spread through contaminated water droplets, causing Legionnaires’ disease. Legionnaires’ disease is a serious and potentially life-threatening form of bacterial pneumonia that frequently requires hospitalization and can result in permanent lung damage, significant medical expenses, lost income, or even death. Because many outbreaks are preventable through proper water management, victims may have the right to pursue compensation when negligence contributed to their illness.
If you or someone you love developed Legionnaires’ disease after living, working, receiving medical care, or visiting a property on Staten Island, Greenstein & Pittari, LLP is prepared to investigate your claim, preserve critical evidence, and pursue every responsible party. Call 1-800-VICTIM2 (1-800-842-8462) for a free consultation. You pay no attorney’s fee unless we recover compensation for you.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is Staten Island at risk for Legionnaires’ disease?
Although Staten Island is less densely populated than many parts of New York City, it contains thousands of residential, commercial, healthcare, and industrial buildings with complex water systems. Apartment buildings, condominiums, hospitals, nursing homes, hotels, schools, office buildings, warehouses, and shopping centers all depend on plumbing systems, cooling towers, hot water storage tanks, rooftop water tanks, fitness facilities, and other equipment that can support Legionella growth if not properly maintained. Because these systems require ongoing inspection, cleaning, testing, and water treatment, maintenance failures can create conditions that allow Legionella bacteria to multiply and spread through contaminated water droplets.
What is Legionnaires’ disease and how does someone become infected?
Legionnaires’ disease is a severe bacterial pneumonia caused by inhaling microscopic water droplets contaminated with Legionella bacteria. Unlike many respiratory illnesses, it is generally not spread from person to person. Without prompt medical treatment, it can lead to respiratory failure, sepsis, kidney injury, permanent lung damage, intensive care hospitalization, or death. Exposure may occur in apartment buildings, hospitals, nursing homes, hotels, office buildings, schools, colleges, and other properties with improperly maintained plumbing systems, cooling towers, hot water systems, rooftop tanks, showers, fountains, therapy pools, or similar water features. Early diagnosis and antibiotic treatment greatly improve the chances of recovery.
Who is most vulnerable to Legionnaires’ disease?
Anyone can develop Legionnaires’ disease, but older adults, smokers, individuals with chronic lung disease, diabetes, kidney disease, cancer, weakened immune systems, organ transplant recipients, hospital patients, and nursing home residents face the greatest risk of severe illness. Because healthcare facilities care for medically vulnerable individuals, hospitals, rehabilitation centers, dialysis centers, nursing homes, and assisted living facilities are generally expected to implement comprehensive water management programs that include inspections, temperature monitoring, water treatment, risk assessments, maintenance documentation, and engineering oversight to reduce the risk of exposure.
How do attorneys investigate a Legionnaires’ disease case?
Every Legionnaires’ disease claim requires an extensive investigation supported by medical and scientific evidence. Greenstein & Pittari, LLP may review medical records, laboratory results, Department of Health investigations, water management plans, cooling tower inspections, plumbing maintenance records, environmental testing, engineering reports, maintenance contracts, building inspection reports, and witness statements. Our attorneys work closely with infectious disease physicians, epidemiologists, environmental engineers, mechanical engineers, microbiologists, and water treatment experts to determine where exposure occurred and whether negligent maintenance contributed to the illness.
Who may be held liable?
Depending on the circumstances, liability may extend to property owners, apartment building owners, condominium associations, cooperative corporations, property management companies, hospitals, nursing homes, hotels, commercial landlords, plumbing contractors, maintenance companies, engineering consultants, water treatment providers, and cooling tower service contractors. Determining responsibility requires a detailed investigation into who controlled the water system, what maintenance obligations existed, and whether reasonable safety practices were followed before the exposure occurred.
What compensation may be available?
Victims may be entitled to recover compensation for medical expenses, hospitalization, intensive care, prescription medications, rehabilitation, future medical treatment, lost wages, diminished earning capacity, pain and suffering, emotional distress, permanent respiratory impairment, and reduced quality of life. When Legionnaires’ disease results in a fatality, surviving family members may also have the right to pursue a wrongful death claim under New York law.
Why is it important to contact a lawyer immediately?
Evidence in Legionnaires’ disease cases can disappear quickly. Once contamination is suspected, building owners often begin cleaning cooling towers, flushing plumbing systems, disinfecting water lines, replacing equipment, conducting environmental testing, or changing maintenance procedures. Although these measures may improve public safety, they can also alter or eliminate evidence needed to prove negligence. Prompt legal representation allows your attorney to preserve maintenance records, inspection reports, testing results, and other critical evidence before it is lost, strengthening your ability to identify the source of exposure and pursue compensation.
How much does it cost to hire Greenstein & Pittari, LLP?
Greenstein & Pittari, LLP represents Legionnaires’ disease victims on a contingency fee basis. There are no upfront attorney’s fees, and you pay nothing unless we successfully recover compensation on your behalf. We also offer free consultations so you can learn about your legal rights without financial risk.
Why Choose Greenstein & Pittari, LLP?
Legionnaires’ disease litigation requires experience with premises liability, infectious disease medicine, environmental engineering, and complex building water systems. Our attorneys work with leading experts to investigate the source of exposure, preserve critical evidence, and hold negligent property owners and other responsible parties accountable.
Greenstein & Pittari, LLP proudly represents clients throughout Staten Island, including St. George, Stapleton, Port Richmond, Great Kills, Tottenville, New Dorp, South Beach, and every surrounding neighborhood. We offer free consultations, bilingual legal services, personalized representation, and trial-ready advocacy focused exclusively on protecting injured New Yorkers.
If you or a loved one contracted Legionnaires’ disease after exposure to a contaminated building water system on Staten Island, call 1-800-VICTIM2 (1-800-842-8462) today for a free consultation.
Don’t Be a Victim Twice.