Two dead, dozens of sick from an outbreak at Virginia's retirement home

SPRINGFIELD, Virginia (AP) – Officials from the Virginia Health Department said that two people had died and another 20 had been hospitalized due to an outbreak of respiratory virus in a large community of retirees.

The Fairfax County Health Department announced Friday that 55 of the 263 residents of the Greenspring Retirement Community in Springfield, Va., Had fallen ill during the outbreak. Over the past two weeks, sick residents have experienced symptoms such as cough, fever and pneumonia.

Health department officials say they have quarantined parts of the building believed to contain the infection. Greenspring does not accept new residents because the outbreak is the subject of an investigation.

Health Department spokesman Benjamin Schwartz said the two dead patients had been hospitalized for pneumonia but were "older people with complex medical problems".

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