THOUSANDS of tax workers at a Government complex have been given health warnings after the deadly legionnaires' bug was found in drinking water.

Managers at the Inland Revenue had to shut down two water dispensers after higher-than-acceptable levels of the legionella bacteria were discovered.

The bacteria can cause the potentially fatal legionnaires' disease, which infected 150 people and killed seven in an outbreak last year.

Staff at the offices, in Longbenton, Newcastle, were first told not to use water in the kitchens.

Later, a loudspeaker message said legionella bacteria had been identified. Workers were told to seek medical advice if they felt unwell.

Many staff at the office, which employs 9,000 people, had left by the time that message was given.

Health and Safety Executive inspectors are to visit to establish the extent of the infection.

Bosses said no staff were at risk from the disease.

A spokesman said: "We were doing routine tests on some chiller units and we found the levels of the bacteria were slightly higher than we would like.

"The units were immediately taken out of action and we informed the Health and Safety Executive.

"The water supply is fine, there is no problem with that, but these chiller units have been taken out of action and they are going to be disinfected."

One woman who worked at the office said: "A lot of people do not know if they should go into work. People fill bottles and drink them at their desks through the day. They have been told to destroy the bottles.

"There are a lot of very concerned people there, including the line managers. I wanted to get out."

A Newcastle City Council spokesman said its environmental health section had been made aware of a problem with drinking water, but hospitals have not had to deal with any cases of legionnaires' disease.

A spokesman for the Health Protection Agency, set up this year to prevent the spread of infectious diseases, said it had been informed.

The rare disease is carried in contaminated water vapour. Legionnaires' disease is a rare form of pneumonia caused by legionella bacteria.

It is rare, but is serious where outbreaks occur.

The bacteria are common, particularly in warm water and mud. If the bacteria get into water systems used in buildings such as hotels, they can multiply quickly and are a risk to people who are exposed through air-conditioning or air cooling systems, or through water systems used for baths or showers.

The bacteria multiply quickly in warm, stagnant water held in a container.

The disease cannot be passed from person to person.