It was early December last year that it became known that a CFB Kingston employee had contracted Legionnaires disease.
Legionella is a bacteria that is commonly found in water.
Stagnant water is one of the factors that can provide conditions for the bacteria to grow and if it gets into the air, Legionnaires disease, a lung infection, is a risk.
“Most people that are young and healthy with an intact immune system have no symptoms whatsoever, or if they do, very minor respiratory pneumonia-like symptoms and respond to regular treatments,” said CFB Kingston’s base surgeon Maj. Jojo Jiang.
It’s believed the employee contracted the disease in a nearly 100-year-old warehouse on the base.
CFB Kingston Base Commander Col. Sonny Hatton says as soon as the bacteria was detected in the warehouse, it was closed.
“We did super chlorinate the building, we tried to remediate the legionella that was found and the tests showed that there was still some legionella which is why we’ve taken the measures that we have,” said Col. Hatton.
Anyone that does have to enter the warehouse is required to wear an N-95 mask.
A total of six employees have been relocated, four from the warehouse and two others in another building where proactive testing was conducted.
“There was one other building that did test positive for legionella and that is the Vimy Officers Mess and that is currently closed and undergoing super chlorination as we speak,” Hatton told Global Kingston.
The base commander says there is no risk to the public and while cleanup efforts continue at the Vimy Officers Mess, the warehouse is slated for demolition.
A date for the demolition hasn’t been set at this time.
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