Janitor Dies After Pneumonia Strikes Richmond Building
A janitor at a Social Security Administration building where 12 workers were struck with pneumonia died of Legionnaire’s disease, officials said Thursday.
The woman, Rosalind Sheffield, 37, died of Legionnaire’s disease at Merritt-Peralta Hospital in Oakland, spokeswoman Nancy Barsky said.
Earlier in the day, about 1,200 workers at the building were told to go home and not return until Monday while investigators try to find the source of the mysterious pneumonia outbreak. After the cause of death was determined, Social Security Commissioner Gwendolyn King said the building will stay closed until she is assured that “the building presents no health or safety hazards.”
Sheffield died Monday after being hospitalized for pneumonia, and two others remain hospitalized--including one person in intensive care.
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