A worker sickened with Legionnaires’ disease by what he believes was a faulty city-owned water cooling tower in Harlem is suing the contractor responsible for maintaining the equipment, The Post has learned.

Patrice Smith is going to court against Nalco, which is contracted by the city to operate Harlem Hospital’s cooling tower, which the Health Department on Friday identified as a source of a deadly outbreak that has killed seven.

“It’s bad that it happened at a city building. They are supposed to clean the building,” said the 49-year-old Brooklyn man, who was hospitalized from July 29 to Aug. 7 with the pneumonia-type illness. 5

“How did you not know? Why did people have to suffer? The city is supposed to be following its own rules. They’re supposed to lead by example.”

He’s a

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