The United Kingdom Health Protection Agency has come out with a report stating that vehicle windscreen wiper water may be the cause of many of the cases of Legionaires' Disease in England and Wales. This startling discovery was made after some research was made from medical case records. The research was conducted after a questionnaire taken from people infected revealed that most of those that caught the disease spent a lot of time in cars and vans in industrial areas with the window open. So don't even think of trying to drink wiper wash water if you suddenly find yourself in a desert without any drinking water. It may be the cause of your death instead of heatstroke.

The HPA also found out that adding windscreen wash fluid will kill the bacteria. This was discovered after the above questionnaire, where a pilot study conducted by the HPA found that traces of the Legionella bacterium were present in one in five windscreen washer reservoirs that did not have windscreen wash fluid in it, but none of those that did.

Legionnaires' Disease is a rare but potentially deadly condition which is caused when the Legionella bacterium is inhaled and causes pneumonia. Stagnant, warm water is the ideal breeding ground for the disease. According to the HPA, the Legionnaires' Disease does not spread from person to person but is present in water environments and is breathed in when it gets into the air in fine particles or mist.

People suffering from Legionnaires' disease usually have fever, chills, and a cough, which may be dry or may produce sputum. Some also have muscle aches, headache, tiredness, loss of appetite, loss of coordination (ataxia), and occasionally diarrhea and vomiting. Some end up dead as it is fatal in around 10