Health problems for office buildings that are left empty

After more than two months of working from home, the PSBB transition period made some companies oblige to return to work in offices. However, returning to the long-abandoned office building poses a hidden threat to workers. What are the health threats besides COVID-19?

Health problems in an empty office building

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Returning to work in the office after undergoing quarantine at home for several months can actually cause new health problems besides COVID-19.

This health threat arises because office buildings that are usually filled with office employees have been closed for several months. The office building that is left empty is said to cause unseen health problems.

According to Andrew Whelton, professor of civil engineering at Purdue University, office buildings are not designed to be abandoned for long. This is evidenced through research from Purdue University on the health protocols of waterways in buildings during COVID-19.

Experts try to warn building managers to pay attention to water problems in their buildings. The reason is, there is a possibility that water can stagnate in pipes, taps, or toilets. If lockdown or people return to work in the office, the bacteria that builds up can cause health problems.

One of the health threats most likely to occur due to drains in offices is legionnaires disease. Legionnaire is a disease caused by bacteria known as legionella and can cause pneumonia.

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What is legionnaires disease?

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As previously mentioned, legionnaires disease is a health threat in office buildings that have long been left unoccupied. This disease is caused by legionella bacteria which can cause pneumonia.

Reporting from the CDC, legionella is a type of bacteria that is often found in freshwater environments, such as lakes and rivers. These bacteria can cause health problems if they grow and spread in building waterways, such as

shower and sink
air conditioning drains
tub of hot water that is not drained after use
water fountain
hot water tank

Meanwhile, buildings such as houses that do not use water to cool the room are not at risk of developing legionella.

In Indonesia alone, legionnaire disease has occurred in several places in 2001. According to a survey from the Indonesian Ministry of Health, this bacteria was found in the cooling system tower water of several hotels. This can be seen from the results of blood tests on officers exposed to legionella bacteria.

The spread of these bacteria can occur after they grow and multiply in building drains. The water containing the legionella can then disperse in fairly small droplets. As a result, the possibility of transmission occurs when people breathe and inhale small droplets of water that contain bacteria.

The risk of drains for office buildings that have long been left empty has been contaminated by legionella bacteria. The good news is that most healthy people who are exposed to legionnaire do not develop severe symptoms. However, there are some people who are at risk of experiencing conditions that require attention, namely:

adults over 50 years of age
smoker or have ever smoked
chronic pulmonary disease patients, such as emphysema and COPD
patients who are taking drugs that weaken the immune system
cancer sufferer
diabetes, kidney failure, and liver failure patients

Legionnaire's disease amid the COVID-19 pandemic

So, what makes the legionella bacteria in the drains of office buildings that have long been left empty need attention, especially in the midst of COVID-19?

If you look at the group that is at risk of developing a fairly severe condition, legionnaires disease tends to attack people with weak immune systems.

Meanwhile, according to Caitlin Proctor, one of the researchers in the study, COVID-19 patients and survivors may be more at risk for the disease.

Therefore, this research was made to increase awareness, both for the government, building managers, and the community. Thus, building managers can check office building drains before reopening and the public will be more careful.

How to deal with legionella bacteria in office buildings?

In fact, administrators of office buildings that have been left vacant for a long time can reduce the risk of transmission by pouring disinfectant into the water system. However, when the water is left too long, the disinfectant liquid will slowly dissipate.

What's more, the disinfectant will disappear on some floors after the weekend, leaving the water again susceptible to bacterial contamination.

However, the building manager may be able to dispose of water that has been stored for a long time and fill it with new. In addition, they can also pour in high doses of disinfectant and raise the temperature to kill bacteria.

Therefore, the role of the community as office employees may remind building managers to maintain waterways properly. Starting from contacting the public health department to regularly checking drainage so that it does not contain bacteria.

One thing to note is that not all buildings have the same water system. Even an office building that has been left empty for a long time will definitely take its own time to clean the waterways from bacterial contamination.