Public Health Experts Call For Swift Investigation To Discover Source

A Bournemouth hotel is being investigated by local environmental health officials after a guest was hospitalised after contracting Legionnaires’ Disease.

Officials have visited the hotel, which has yet to be named, to take samples in a bid to discover if the hotel is the source.

Peter Apps, 74, was admitted to hospital shortly after a week-long visit to the town after suffering flu-like symptoms and collapsing at home in Sittingbourne, Kent.  He suffered a collapsed lung and required kidney dialysis as his organs battled the disease. He was placed in a medically-induced coma.

Louise Jones, the Environmental Health Manager at Bournemouth Borough Council, told local media: “We are investigating a legionella report received from Public Health England relating to a person that stayed in a Bournemouth hotel. Officers are carrying out visits to the hotel and have taken a number of samples from the premises.”

Jatinder Paul, a Public Health Expert at Irwin Mitchell, who successfully represented the families of three men killed by an outbreak of Legionnaires’ disease in Stoke-on-Trent, said:

Expert Opinion

We have seen first-hand how serious Legionnaires’ disease can be for victims. <br/> <br/>“Thankfully in this case it is reported that medical staff were able to stabilise the victim and he has begun his recovery. The priority now must be investigating the outbreak and isolating the cause as soon as possible, to prevent others from contracting the disease. <br/> <br/>“An investigation is underway and it is important this is conducted quickly and thoroughly to protect members of the public and to identify what caused Peter Apps to contract the illness. Jatinder Paul - Partner