#legionella bacteria

[animanightmate]

Legions of Doom

Yeah, so my country’s leaders have decided to double-down on the anti-immigration rhetoric that they shamefully manipulated then rode to get them into power. You know, because that worked so well for Brexit. Let’s keep pushing that classic. One of the first things our newish PM, Rishi Sunak (note: a son of immigrants), did was to announce that they were going to be cracking down on the “small boats” - i.e. the ones that desperate people use to reach these shores. Pretty despicable, right? Don’t worry, our “anti-woke” Tory Party in charge has barely got started.

You may already have heard about the plan headed up by Suella Braverman (another child of immigrants), UK Home Secretary (reinstated after being fired for being a security risk) to deport “illegal immigrants” to Rwanda, an expensive (and apparently illegal) notion that hasn’t really got off the ground yet, and you might be thinking: there’s no lower they can sink. Hold onto your life jackets.

The Immigration Minister, Robert Jenrick, decided that the lobbies of the children's asylum centres were too welcoming, with their colourful, cheerful murals of famous cartoon characters, so ordered the walls to be painted grey; like a dull, battleship grey.

Then it was revealed that the asylum seekers, refugees, and migrants who were currently being housed in hotels (rather than, you know, having their applications to live here properly processed so they could earn money, house themselves, and contribute to society) were costing us too much money. So, you’re going to process them? Oh, no, you’re going to put them on a barge.

But not just any barge… the Bibby Stockholm is special. It’s been the place to house folk temporarily for a few decades now, in various parts of Europe, including homeless folk and asylum seekers in Germany and the Netherlands, plus oil rig and off-shore windfarm construction workers, and is currently moored off the Dorset Coast in the south of England. It’s designed to house about 200 people. It’s been retrofitted to fit 500. Yes, you read that right. And not by enlarging so much as putting bunk-beds in. I’m sure that won’t make anyone feel like they’re being housed in a floating prison… It’s got, you know, a multi-faith prayer room and a gym and catering and medical facilities. And inhabitants will get day release. And 24 hour security.

So it’s safe, right? It’s got extra fire escapes now and… no? No. It’s been assessed and there are some severe worries about how fire safe it is (when professionals start using the term “death trap”, it does tend to make one think, you know?), and how 500 people in there are likely to not be able to get out in case of a fire. Also that any outbreak of disease is likely to spread like wildfire. Ironically. But it’s not like you’re going to put people at risk like that, huh? Oh, and there’s a lot of standing water in the system because it’s not been inhabited or sorted out for a good long while, so you’re going to check for things like mould and legionella bacteria, right?

Wait, you’ve asked for legionella tests but you’re going to start putting people on the thing anyway, before the results come in? That’s… bold.

And… wait, you’ve now put a man on board who has tuberculosis? And you’re threatening people who don’t comply with being put on board that they’ll get no benefits? Even though they’ve been advised that they’re allowed to refuse to go, legally? But the Tory Deputy Chairman went on record to tell people who didn’t want to go that they could, and I quote, “Fuck off back to France.” So that's okay then. Problem solved.

And now you’ve found legionella in the water on the barge. Oh, three days ago? Uh, haha, that seems odd. So… you’re evacuating, right? Well, look; there’s a bar you’ve finally managed to clear. It’s somewhere in Hades, but sure… Have a gold star.

I’m sure there’s something I’ve missed, but that’s the crux of it. I’m not saying, you know, death camps, but, if anything, I might well be saying… death camps…

Oh, and then there’s the whole thing with the hotels where over 100 asylum seekers who are unaccompanied children have been kidnapped in the last year. Nothing to see here. Our coasts and waterways are filling with raw sewage, but everything’s fine. All part of the plan.

[eaglesnick]

“If safety is a joke, then death is the punch line.” Unknown

A few days ago, the dog-food-eating Oliver Dowden, the United Kingdom's hapless Deputy Prime Minister, made the outrageous suggestion that the Fire Brigade's concern over fire hazards on the migrant barge the Bibby Stockholm were politically motivated.

“Dowden’s jibe at fire union over migrant barge safety 'disgraceful'. Deputy PM suggests that FBU’s Labour affiliation influenced its decision to raise concerns about the Bibby Stockholm."  (Guardian: 03/08/23)

Four days later and Home Office minister Sarah Dine said of the Bibby Stockholm:

“It is a safe place to for people to live and stay”  (LBC: 07/08/23)

This position was reiterated by Immigration Minister Robert Jenrick who:

“...offered a guarantee that it is a “safe facility”  (Independent: 07/08/23)

Four days later and we find out that the Bibby Stockholm is anything but a safe place to live and stay, and that Jenrick’s guarantee isn’t worth the breath it was uttered on.

“Asylum seekers leave Bibby Stockholm amid fears over bacteria. Legionella bacteria, which can cause a serious type of lung infection known as Legionnaires' disease, has been found in the water on the barge.”  (Sky news: 11/08/23)

Is the Tory Party so obsessed with image and vote winning by playing the illegal migrant card that it is willing to sacrifice the lives of those claiming asylum?  Evidence would suggest it is.

[quantumkurv]

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[cctinsleybaxter]

“legionnaires’ disease is named after the american legion” sounds like something a third grader would tell you I can’t believe it’s real

[reasoningdaily]

Federal building employees push for temporary closure over Legionella concerns

DETROIT (WXYZ) — Employees working at the Patrick McNamara Federal building in downtown Detroit are pushing to have it temporarily closed for Legionella concerns.

7 Action News first reported on issues within the building in December after the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) found elevated levels of lead, copper, and legionella in water in several sites throughout the building.

Ingesting copper, lead, and Legionella in drinking water can cause digestive issues, brain damage, and Legionnaire's disease among other health issues.

A group of employees working at the federal building say the 7 Action News December report was the first time they’d even been notified. At least two more agencies with office spaces at the McNamara building have moved to remote work or deployed workers to other facilities after hearing the report. Now employees say they want the building closed until GSA can 100% guarantee the building is safe.

"I don’t believe GSA is totally providing all information that they know. That makes it even scarier," said Monique Buchanan who has worked in the federal building for 15 years.

Buchanan is the president of AFGE Local 3239, which in part represents employees at the Social Security Field Office. She says she believes employees may have been ingesting the chemicals and bacteria for much longer than they realize.

"GSA has not identified at the earliest point that egionella and copper and lead has been in the water. My assumption is because we were on mandatory telework until about March of 2022, I am assuming when we re-entered the sites, this was there waiting on us. And I believe we’ve been taking in this water, washing our hands, breathing in the steam from hot water since at least March of 2022," said Buchanan.

Reports sent to building employees show over the last few months, GSA has run multiple tests at 120 sites. A November round of testing showed multiple sites with uncontrolled or poorly controlled levels of lead, copper, and Legionella.

Jan 2024 Report (December Testing) by WXYZ-TV Channel 7 Detroit on Scribd

After taking several problem fountains and bathrooms out of service and performing enhanced flushing, GSA sent a letter stating that a December round of testing showed only one site still had elevated levels of copper. The letter also showed five sites including the bathrooms on the 21st floor still have uncontrolled levels of Legionella. It's unclear what percentage of total sites the 120 samples represent.

Employees say it's especially concerning because they service so many vulnerable populations.

"We have a range of public that comes into our buildings that rely on us of course for service primarily but, secondly their assumption is that they’re in a safe facility because it’s a federal site," said Buchanan. "The public will not access water fountains and water sites that are closed off but the areas that have not yet been tested, which is 75% of the building, is not closed off. So there are sites where potentially there is harm."

Greg Senden represents employees at another office within the building and says GSA has not been transparent enough throughout this process.

"I guess our concern is that GSA is not doing the job that they should be doing to maintain and keep the buildings that they operate safe," said Senden. "I would like to see GSA be more forthcoming with information. I would like to have the public and the employees that work in this building be made aware of what the issues are so they can decide for themselves whether it’s safe for them to be in the building."

Friday morning, 7 Action News reached out to GSA for a comment on what has been done to remedy the water issues since our December report however no one was immediately available.

The agency sent the following statement last month:

The safety of federal employees, the public and contractors working in federal buildings is GSA’s highest priority. Water tests conducted on Nov. 8 at the Patrick V. McNamara Federal Building in Detroit determined elevated levels of Legionella in specific test points. GSA follows CDC guidance in addressing the risk of Legionella related illness. Immediately after receiving these test results, GSA notified building occupants, shut off the affected water outlets and restricted access to the outlets. In addition, GSA is continuing to flush water through these points while developing a full building water flushing and sampling testing plan. Additional testing is being conducted on the elevated test points. GSA continues to keep building occupants apprised of the latest safety precautions in place. Tanya Schusler Regional Public Affairs Officer  U.S. General Services Administration

"The goal here is not to point fingers or blame anyone. The goal here is just to make sure we have a safe facility here," said Buchanan.

Employees say they have also reached out to lawmakers to put pressure on GSA to remedy the issue. Senator Gary Peters who also has an office in the federal building sent the following:

“This is simply unacceptable. Members of the public who visit this building to access critical services, as well as the dedicated employees who work there, need to know that the water they are using is safe. I’ll continue pressing the General Services Administration to quickly and completely resolve this issue, and ensure they are responding to concerns like these effectively moving forward.” Senator Gary Peters (D-MI) Chairman of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee

Testing at water sites within the building is still ongoing. The next round is expected later this month.

[ricisidro]

Infectious Disease Alert ! About Legionnaires' disease. It is a serious type of pneumonia (lung infection) caused by Legionella bacteria. #Legionella #bacteria https://www.cdc.gov/legionella/about/index.html https://www.instagram.com/p/CiDWrRMLBRF/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[thebibliosphere]

Just found out something that you might already know, but I thought you should hear about just in case. Apparently many showerheads have biofilms in them, and when they're used they basically aerosolize bacteria/fungi/etc, which I imagine would be very bad for you and is a definite possibility in your nightmare house. There are a couple of studies, but this is the one I was looking at:

https://www.google.com/url?q=https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30377276/&sa=U&ved=2ahUKEwi2z4Pm5vmAAxUTJUQIHXJaA94QFnoECAoQAg&usg=AOvVaw27mmBTVT8fjgzdUsLcg6oG

Oh yeah, that stuff is nasty (link for anyone who wants it). It's one of the reasons I bought all new showerheads when we moved in here. I didn't want to even try cleaning whatever the fuck I'd find 😓

I was always hyper-aware of stuff like this, too, because my mum had a friend who caught Legionnaires’ disease after she moved into a house that'd been dormant for a while, so the shower and water tank became a breeding ground for Legionella bacteria. Her kids got sick too. Freaked my mother the hell out. When we were kids, she used to take the showerheads off and soak them in vinegar every few months as part of her deep cleaning.

No idea if that helped or not, but it always made the fixtures shiny.

[mindblowingscience]

A mysterious and rapid rise in Legionnaires' disease, a severe bacterial lung infection, has been linked to cleaner air, in a US study of trends in sulfur dioxide pollution. Puzzled by the lengthy global upsurge in Legionnaires' disease, an atypical form of pneumonia caused by Legionella bacteria, researchers at two US universities and the New York State Department of Health investigated possible environmental factors that could explain the trend in their neck of the woods.

Continue Reading.

[lesbiansandgayssupporttheminers]

Who knew putting people on prison barges was a terrible idea?

[willcodehtmlforfood]

"Migrants are being temporarily removed from the Bibby Stockholm barge after traces of Legionella bacteria were found in the on board water system.

The BBC understands that routine testing was done before migrants moved on to the vessel, moored in Dorset.

But test results showing traces of the bacteria came back only after migrants had moved to the barge.

The Home Office said the 39 migrants living aboard were being disembarked while assessments are carried out.

Legionella is the bacteria that can cause Legionnaires disease - a type of pneumonia."

Stockholm syndrome

Edit:

"Ruairi Kelly lived on the vessel for several months in 2013, when it was berthed in the Shetlands for a gas pipeline project.

He told The Independent it was “not luxurious” and felt more like a cross-Channel ferry than living quarters. The government is set to cram in 500 asylum seekers onto the barge – two to a room in bunks and more than double its previous capacity.

Mr Kelly, who was working on the Laggan-Tormore gas plant project as a health and safety adviser, said there were “never two people in a room at one time” because they were so small.

He recalled “cramped conditions” and said he and his colleagues could spend only three weeks at a time on board due to the squeezed living quarters."

[soldan56]

Legionella nella rete idrica 

Health-risk bacteria forces UK to remove #migrants from barge #BibbyStockholm 

[beardedmrbean]

Antti Kaikkonen (Cen), who steps back into his role as Minister of Defence next week following two months of paternity leave, sat down for an interview with tabloid Iltalehti (siirryt toiseen palveluun).

Kaikkonen spoke to IL about his role as defence minister as it became clear that Russia really was invading Ukraine a year ago.

The minister characterised the day before the invasion as dark, sad, dangerous and "very serious," when he warned that the situation could deteriorate very quickly.

Ahead of the initial attack, Kaikkonen took part in a meeting of defence ministers from Joint Expeditionary Force, a UK-led Northern European defence coalition, where he was presented an extensive overview of the situation.

"The attack began the next morning. I was mentally prepared for it, but it was nevertheless a big disappointment to see it in practice, that we are now in Europe of the 2020s. At a time when we no longer want to see wars," he told IL.

As for the safety of Finland after a year-long war raging 2,000 kilometres south on the same continent, Kaikkonen said that Finland is certainly safe.

"It's true that a lot of work has been done to ensure that Finland remains safe. And we do it constantly so that people in Finland can sleep peacefully at night," he told the paper.

The minister also talked about Finland's abruptly-frozen relations with Russia as well as Finland's defence capabilities, which have been lauded by the international press and community as the Nordic country faced its eastern neighbour with new eyes.

"Finland has been praised so much during the past year that it has almost been embarrassing at times," Kaikkonen admitted.

Hungary MPs set Nato vote date

The Hungarian Parliament will begin discussing the ratifcation of Finland and Sweden's Nato application next Wednesday, according to Tampere-based paper Aamulehti and other outlets.

A debate on the issue is scheduled for next week, a separate vote for each country in store the following week.

Hungary is the only Nato country, apart from Turkey, that has not yet ratified Finland and Sweden's membership in the military alliance. Their approval requires the ratification of all 30 Nato countries.

Hungary has repeatedly postponed the ratification, however, unlike Turkey, it has not indicated that it has any objection to Finland and Sweden's accession into the defence alliance.

The Hungarian opposition has accused Prime Minister Viktor Orban's governing right-wing Fidesz Party of unnecessary delay.

Hospital's bacteria battle

Kuopio's Harjula Hospital has struggled with an outbreak of legionella bacteria for years, Helsingin Sanomat (siirryt toiseen palveluun) reported on Thursday.

Legionella, HS explained, is a stubborn strain of bacteria that is difficult to eradicate once it gets into the water supply.

The Kuopio hospital has tried to rid the facility of the problem since the spring of 2021, when three people at the hospital fell ill with pneumonia caused by the bacteria.

Samples taken from the hospital in February showed that Legionella was still present. The bacteria was found in amounts above permissable levels in all 14 sample measures that were taken by inspectors.

The hospital has raised its hot water temperature to a maximum of 65 degrees Celsius. Additionally, unused water taps have been cut-off from the water supply, while those still connected have had water run through them regularly.

Legionella is naturally occurring and present in small quantities. It can multiply in water systems under favourable conditions and be carried in aerosols into the air. Humans can become infected through inhalation or ingestion.

Symptoms of infection include dry cough, fever, headache, muscle pain, shortness of breath. Occasionally the bacterium causes severe pneumonia.

[ceilidhtransing]

"Why do you need to put yourself in a box" has got to be one of the dumbest things people say to queer people when we come out, for so many reasons.

First off, it's extremely telling that they view "being gay", "being bisexual", "being trans" etc as "being in a box", but not "being straight". It makes you want to ask in response, "so are you straight?" and when they inevitably answer "yes", replying with "but why would you want to put yourself in a box like that?" It's always a request not to identify as something queer; it's never a request not to identify as straight.

Secondly, it's so often paired with "why do you need a label; can't we all just be human". Which is even more telling as to the way they seem to think that identifying as queer in some way is putting a condition on one's humanity - like straight people just get to be "human" whereas, say, a bi person is "human (bisexual)". Further, I will think about "not needing a label" and "just being human" when that's the way society starts to treat queer and trans people - when it's such a non-issue that the distinction between queer and not queer almost ceases to matter. But as long as my ability to live a full and happy life is constrained by queerphobia, by people who view me not as a person but as an Issue, I can't "just be human".

Plus, putting a word to your identity does not make you any less part of the broader category of human. Funnily enough, it's often reminded me of... bacteria. To most people, people who aren't microbiologists specialising in this stuff, bacteria is just bacteria. We know there are many different types but we don't know much about them and certainly couldn't identify them if we saw them. But a microbiologist can say "this one is salmonella, this one is legionella, this one is Clostridium botulinum..." Someone responding to that with "but that's silly! You don't need all these labels! They're all just bacteria!" would be crazy. Yes, they are all bacteria, and for many situations, merely knowing that something is bacteria is good enough - but there are also situations in which you need to know what type it is. The differences don't go away just because someone is insisting on oversimplifying them all down to merely "bacteria", in the same way that insisting that "we're all just human" doesn't actually do away with the differences between people, it just erases them.

Ultimately, the message I get from people who say things like "why do you need to put yourself in a box", "why do you need a label", "why can't you just be human" etc is that putting a word to difference, pointing out a difference in a way that can't be ignored, makes them uncomfortable. They don't like the fact that humanity is diverse and would rather be able to ignore that, because when difference is non-specific and nameless, it doesn't have to be acknowledged. They want to continue burying their head in the sand with the idea that they "don't have an issue with gay people", but can't handle the idea of finding out that a specific person they know is gay. That's why this type of person happens to very frequently also be the "but don't make it your whole personality" type. They want to keep moving through the world blindly assuming everyone around them is basically the same as them because they fundamentally conceive of difference as a bad and shameful thing and have deluded themselves into thinking that that the real way to solve inequality is to just never make difference explicit.

[mask131]

Deadly fall: The other “curse of the pharaohs”

THE OTHER CURSE OF THE PHARAOHS

Category: American urban legends / USA hauntings

I talked about the “curse of the mummy”, also known as the “curse of the pharaohs”. But you might be surprised to learn that there is “another” curse coming from old Egypt – a curse said to strike only a specific place in one of the most iconic American towns: Las Vegas.

Las Vegas is filled with the most extravagant and unique hotels and casinos you will ever see. And one of them is rumored to be cursed. Given we are speaking of Egypt, you won’t be surprised to learn that it is the Luxor hotel and casino: a towering pyramid structure standing over the Las Vegas landscape. The very outward shape of the casino has been known to make people feel unease: the enormous pyramid is entirely black, with no ornaments of any kind, just the opaque and dark imposing structure – and at night one beam of white light gets out from the top of the pyramid, like some occult scene from horror movies.

But even eerier is the dark history of the Luxor – which seems to be filled with a lot of nasty incidents.

The Luxor opened up on October 1993. 30 stories high, it is one of the biggest hotel-casinos of Las Vegas, and its beam was designed to be one of the strongest beams of light of the world, visible by pilots flying even hours away from California. As you can guess, the Luxor was entirely based around Ancient Egypt: the casino is pyramid-shaped, there is a sphinx statue near the entrance, the name of the casino can be found on an obelisk, and the inside is filled with Egyptian-looking statues and murals. The Luxor was created by the Circus Circus Enterprises (a big hotel-and-casino corporation from Nevada) during the brief “family-friendly” era that Las Vegas knew at the end of the 20th century: the Luxor, as a top-class hotel and casino, was designed to attract a wealthy clientele, but its unique theme and decorum was also prepared to appeal families seeking “theme park”-like fun, basically making the Luxor both a five-star hotel AND a true tourist attraction.

To list the incidents attributed to the “curse”, I will invite you to go backwards with me through time…

# 2012: Three guests of the hotel fell ill. They had contracted the Legionnaire’s disease, and it was found that the Legionella bacteria had somehow infected the water system of the Luxor. Bizarrely, after two guests fell ill, the water was tested but the Legionella was nowhere to be found: it was only after a third guest was infected (and in fact later died, the other two healed), that the Legionella was discovered.

# Also 2012: the elevators of the Luxor are not called elevators but “inclinators” because, due to the pyramid-shape of the building, they actually go in a diagonal way, following the slopes of the pyramid. In 2012, two airmen from the Nellis Air Force Base had a fight in the first-floor lobby of the western part of the Luxor. One of the two pushed the other against the inclinator door – which mysteriously opened, despite there being no cabin at the level of this floor: just the empty shaft. The victim fell 25 feet down, all the way to the basement of the Luxor. He was sent to hospital in critical condition.

# In June 2010, Las Vegas football player DeMario Reynolds and his friend, Jason Sindelar, a MMA fighter (Mixed Martial Art), got into a fight in a suite of the hotel. The fight started when Sindelar, drunk and angry, verbally fought with his girlfriend during a party organized in Reynolds’ suite. Reynolds asked Sindelar to leave the party, but it only made him angrier: he tried to hit his girlfriend, and grab her by the neck. Reynolds tried to restrain the fighter by pushing him down the bathroom floor. Then the fight was taken to the main bedroom, where the two men had a short fistfight. Sindelar finally left the suite, but not before returning shortly after, hitting Reynolds in the head and in the chest – after bringing Reynolds to the ground, Sindelar went all out on him, and other guests of the party called the hotel’s security. The injured Reynolds was taken to the Desert Springs Hospital, but he had died of his wounds before arriving there.

# May 2007: in the parking garage of the Luxor, a young food court employee left a coffee cup on top of his car. When he later returned to remove the cup, it exploded in his hand and killed him: a homemade bomb had been placed inside. Investigations led to the arrest of two men, who had indeed created the bomb and placed it in the cup – but they actually didn’t know the victim, and there was no evident motive for why they would do such a thing. Visibly, they just wanted to make a bomb and kill someone – anyone.

# September 1996: A woman jumped from the 26th story of the hotel and died. Her heavy injuries coupled with her lack of identification made it hard to identify her – she fell near the entrance of what was then the buffet, but by today has been completely reshaped into the new food court of the casino. We never knew who she was or why she jumped – all we know is that she clearly killed herself. The women of the 26th floor soon became a “ghost story” in Las Vegas, as everybody invented their own “legends” about the reason for her fall: the most famous of which claims that the woman was a prostitute who killed herself after discovering she had HIV. Still today people claim her ghost can be seen on the 26th floor.

# Beyond this woman, three more deadly falls were reported at the Luxor, two of which were suicides but one – a man jumping from the 10th floor – still of unknown nature (suicide? Accident? Murder?).

# But the oldest “ghosts” of the Luxor are said to be here since the building of the hotel. You see, William Bennett, the CEO of Circus Circus Enterprises in the 90s, built the Luxor in eighteen months at a very low cost. When you see how big and grand the construction is, you realize what it means: corners were cut. We know that when the Luxor actually opened, in October 1993, the construction wasn’t actually complete – some parts of the structure were still built, and some guests had to stay in unfinished rooms. We also know that during the first years of the hotel, the “inclinators” didn’t work properly – and soon people realized that the Luxor had been built in an unusual soft spot of the desert, meaning the pyramid was literally sinking in the ground. This led to the rumors that workers had died during the constructions – while there is no official death record of any worker during the building of the Luxor, the rumor claims that at least two men died during the building, but that their death was covered by Circus Circus Enterprises – some local media even went as far as claim it was seven men, and not two, that died. The rumor notably fed of the real fact that the construction of the pyramid had been a very difficult and dangerous process due to its unusual shape (coupled with the all the cut corners). Rumors claim that in the quiet part of the hotel the ghosts of the workers can still be spotted – and back when the hotel had a unique boat-riding attraction called the Luxor’s Nile Riverboat, some visitors claimed to have seen the dead workers inside the tunnels.

- - - - - - -

All those incidents and ghost-sighting coupled together led people to believe that a “curse” had been placed on the Luxor. Why? Because of the very Egyptian model of the Luxor.

The outside pyramid is a reproduction of the Great Pyramid of Giza (well, it is only three-quarters its size, so a smaller replica), and the hotel contains the biggest and most accurate replica of the Tomb of King Tutankhamun known on American ground – carefully recreated down to every detail with the same materials originally used for the tomb. No need to tell you that Tutankhamun was THE big curse of Egypt, but strangely it is not this replica that is thought to have brought the curse, but rather the rest of the hotel: because the other “Egyptian decorum” are all noted to be basically cheap and inaccurate replicas. As such, it is thought that the curse was brought onto the casino due to being a mockery of a pyramid, and due to the creators of the site not understanding the meaning of the occult and mystic symbols they used.

For example superstitious people refuse to go play in the Luxor due to a pyramid being a tomb – and it is always bad luck to go gambling in tombs or near graves. Other point out that there is only one sphinx in front of the pyramid’s entrance, when Egypt belief claimed that before a palace or a pyramid you needed to build two sphinxes to ward off evil spirits and wicked influences. The constructors did so to replicate the “lonely sphinx” sitting in front of the Great Pyramid – but archeologists will tell you that if there is one sphinx today, it is because the other one was destroyed. The urban legend notably claims that the dark pyramid attracts malevolent energies, and that the only way to purify it would be to place an eye sculpture at its top.

Now beyond the Egyptian-cultural-appropriation theory, another story for the “origins” of the curse is much more local and rooted in the history of Las Vegas: it is said that the Luxor is cursed because it was built on the site of a former secret mobster burial ground: a mass grave for the victims of the mafias.