There are currently several outbreaks of legionella in the country. A bacteria that is particularly dangerous for the elderly and people with weakened immune systems. And the number of cases has increased sharply over the past decade, statistics from the Public Health Agency show.
The bath house in Råneå in Luleå municipality will probably not reopen. The management proposes that it be closed because it will be too expensive to continue the cleanup.
– Many times flushing with 75-degree water solves the problem, but it didn’t this time, says unit manager Mattias Kenttä to TV4 Nyheterna.
It is not only in Råneå that people fight legionella. In Hässleholm and Gothenburg, nursing homes are affected, and in Stockholm, the spa facility Yasuragi recently closed temporarily after staff fell ill.
The number of infected has more than doubled
Legionella is transmitted through the inhalation of small water droplets and is particularly dangerous for the elderly and people with weakened immune systems, who can develop Legionnaires’ disease with severe pneumonia.
In the last decade, the number of people infected in Sweden has more than doubled, according to statistics from the Public Health Agency: from 72 cases in 2012 to 177 cases in 2022. What the increase is due to is not clear, but more water installations in our buildings may be a reason. The organization Säker vatten warns against lowering the water temperature below 60 degrees in the tap water in search of lower electricity bills, because once legionella has grown, it is difficult to stop:
– In some cases, these bacteria hide in small amoebas and are protected there. Once you have achieved growth, it is problematic, says Martin Brunnkvist, technical manager at Säker Vatten.