Health Secretary Nicola Sturgeon has predicted more casualties of a fatal outbreak of Legionnaires’ disease.
As of this morning, 51 people are suspected of having the illness in the Lothian health board area. Of these, 27 are confirmed cases but there have been no more fatalities since the death of a man on Tuesday.
He has been named as 56-year-old labourer Bert Air.
NHS Lothian said Mr Air had an underlying health complaint.
The majority of confirmed cases are linked geographically to the Dalry, Gorgie and Saughton areas of south-west Edinburgh.
Ms Sturgeon told a press conference the suspected source was environmental contamination, with early indications suggesting the outbreak was the result of a contaminated cloud being emitted from a cooling tower.
Officials are now liaising with the Met Office to analyse the impact of temperature and wind speed on plumes from the towers.
Dr Duncan McCormick, chairman of NHS Lothian’s incident management team, said the majority of those affected are men aged between their mid-30s and late-80s.
He said two patients that had been ”seriously unwell” had now been discharged, and that the antibiotics being used to treat the condition appeared to be ”working very well.”
Ms Sturgeon described the outbreak as a ”significant event” for NHS Lothian and said the government had activated its emergency plan.
Dr McCormick said he was ”confident” the source of the outbreak had been identified.
”Our advice is that there is a very low risk to the public and people should go about their daily business as usual,” he said.
”We remain confident based on the available evidence that the general source of the infection has been identified and that the treatment to the cooling towers will prove successful.
”We are expecting cases to continue to emerge over the next few days. I would like to assure the public that the drinking water is completely safe the virus is not passed on by drinking water or from person-to-person transmission.
”If anyone has any concerns we would advise them to consult their GP or the NHS24 dedicated helpline.”
Ms Sturgeon said an emergency information leaflet will be delivered to all homes and businesses in affected areas today.
GPs have also been provided with information on spotting the signs of infection.
A dedicated NHS helpline has been set up for anyone concerned and can be reached on 0800 0858 531.