Legionella detected at 2 more Michigan's Oakland County buildings

Max Bryan, The Detroit News on Jan 28, 2026

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PONTIAC, Mich. — Oakland County has detected Legionella at two more of its buildings following a shrinking presence of bacteria inside two other buildings that initially had issues.

The county on Wednesday announced it detected two positive samples at the North Oakland Health Center and two at the county's Resource and Crisis Center from tests conducted Jan. 19.

In response to the presence of bacteria, the county has started to install filters on all fixtures in the two buildings, will flush the buildings' water systems and will conduct more testing. The county is also communicating the situation with employees and visitors in those facilities, according to a Wednesday news release.

"There are no known cases of Legionnaires’ disease associated with either facility and the risk to employees and the public remains low," the release states.

County facilities have tested positive for the bacteria since the Sheriff's Administration Building tested positive after an employee was hospitalized with Legionnaires' disease in November. The county courthouse was then tested after a person who contracted Legionnaires' in April 2025 said they had visited the building in their exposure period.

The new findings come just days after the county announced Monday that one positive water sample was collected Jan. 13-14 at the Circuit Court Tower, down three in the previous round of testing. The county announced last week that the Oakland County Sheriff's Office Administration Building was free of Legionella this month, down from six fixtures testing positive in November.

Legionnaires' is a serious type of pneumonia caused by Legionella bacteria, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Symptoms usually develop 2 to 14 days after exposure to the bacteria and include cough, fever, aches, shortness of breath and headaches.

Legionella occurs naturally in freshwater bodies but can also grow in pipes, heaters and storage tanks.

There were 41 cases of Legionnaires' disease in Oakland County in 2025, according to county records.

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