Central Area Health Service Public Health physician Dr Margaret Young said 11 mine workers were seen by a general practitioner on Monday and another miner was recently in hospital in Mackay with pneumonia.

"These are people who in the last two or three weeks have had a significant respiratory infection with fever and coughs," she said.

"Many of them are now well, some of them are not and so we are arranging testing for them to see if they are part of this situation at the Grasstree mine."

Queensland Health has already confirmed two employees from Grasstree Mine near Middlemount have tested positive to the disease.

Water samples have been collected from the mine and have been sent to Brisbane for testing.

Young said the process of testing water samples required the growth of bacteria on a special medium which takes at least four days for a positive result and seven days for a negative result.

“Queensland Health has teams of specially trained investigators from the central and northern areas of the state working to ensure we protect the health of anyone who may have been exposed to this disease,” Young said.

“We are also working closely with and offering support to the Middlemount doctor who has been the main contact with the ill mine employees.”

Young said Queensland Health was using all necessary resources to ensure anyone with symptoms was tested and treated.

“Our team of people, mainly from the Public Health Unit but with a lot of assistance from professionals across Queensland Health, are using tried and proven methods to do follow-up testing on the miners.

“An important fact for people to remember is that legionella can only be caught from the source. It is not infectious and can not be passed from human to human.”

Anglo Coal is contacting all mine employees and contractors, and Queensland Health has ensured GPs and emergency departments throughout Central Queensland have been provided appropriate advice.