Meningitis Cases Rise To 20 As Outbreak Declared National Incident

The number of meningitis cases being investigated has risen to 20 following the ‘super-spreader’ outbreak at Club Chemistry in Canterbury, Kent.

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has declared the outbreak a national incident due to its “unprecedented” and “explosive” nature.

Thus far, two young people have died – a 21-year-old student at the University of Canterbury and a 17-year-old pupil at Queen Elizabeth’s Grammar School in nearby Faversham – with others seriously ill in hospital, including one in London who travelled to the capital from Kent.

Out of the 20 cases, nine have been lab-confirmed as meningitis, with the remaining 11 still being investigated. Which doesn’t sound too bad in the grand scheme of things, although UKHSA chief executive Susan Hopkins says this is the ‘most cases [she’s] seen in a single weekend’ in her 35 years working in healthcare and medicine.

Worse still, a nine-month-old baby girl is currently in intensive care with a confirmed MenB infection.

Health chiefs believe a ‘super-spreader event’ occurred at Club Chemistry in Canterbury between 5–7 March, with students mixing together, sharing vapes and kissing and whatnot.

Over 2,500 doses of precautionary antibiotics have already been administered and a vaccination programme is being rolled out for students in University of Kent residence halls.

It’s important to note that while this all sounds very scary on the news or reading about it online, the actual risk to the general public is negligible. Unlike highly contagious respiratory viruses like the flu, meningitis-causing bacteria are relatively “sluggish”. Transmission generally requires close, prolonged contact with respiratory droplets or throat secretions, which explains the link to the student night at Club Chemistry and shared student housing.

The reason this situation is being treated as a national incident is because of how quickly it has spread since the weekend, despite only 20 case numbers. I wouldn’t worry about it too much unless you’re a student at a uni or college or school in Kent, and even then, you’ll probably be alright if you play it safe. Onwards and upwards!

For the anti-vaccine parents whose child died after they tried to cure meningitis with maple syrup, click HERE.