All the cases have required hospital admission and many of those affected by the illness are believed to have attended nightclub in Canterbury between March 5 and 7
Thousands of students are being urged to get vaccinated after an outbreak of meningitis has left two people dead.
Around 5,000 students in university halls in Kent will be offered the meningitis B (menB) vaccine in coming days as heath officials rush to prevent further spread of the fatal illness. Hundreds of people are being offered antibiotics as an immediate treatment.
Fifteen cases of meningitis have been reported to the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), including the two deaths, all of which had required hospital admission. Four cases have been confirmed to have menB. The number of cases is expected to rise as the incubation period for the infection is two to 14 days.
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On Tuesday, March 17, Health Secretary Wes Streeting said most students would not already be vaccinated against menB and the jabs will begin in the next few days.
“This is an unprecedented outbreak. It is also a rapidly developing situation,” he told MPs.
Mr Streeting said the menB vaccine has been available on the NHS since 2015 as part of routine childhood immunisations, “but clearly most students would not be vaccinated”.
“Given the severity of the situation, I can confirm to the House that we will begin a targeted vaccination programme for students living in halls of residence at the University of Kent in Canterbury, which will begin in the coming days.”
The vaccine programme may be expanded to other cohorts deemed to be at risk.
Health officials have urged people to take antibiotics if advised. It is understood that a single tablet of Ciprofloxacin reduces the risk of meningitis in a household by around 80% to 90%.
Experts have said express worry over the high number of cases appearing in such a short space of time.
“This looks like a super-spreader event, with ongoing spread within the halls of residence in the universities,” UKHSA chief executive Susan Hopkins said.
“There will have been some parties particularly around this, so there will have been lots of social mixing.”
“I can say that in my 35 years working in medicine, in healthcare and hospitals, this is the most cases I’ve seen in a single weekend with this type of infection.”
“It’s the explosive nature that is unprecedented here – the number of cases in such a short space of time.”
Many of those affected by the illness are believed to have attended Club Chemistry in Canterbury between March 5 and 7.
Those who attended Club Chemistry during that time can collect antibiotics from:
- The Gate Clinic at Kent and Canterbury Hospital
- Westgate Hall on Westgate Hall Road, Canterbury
- The Carey Building, Thanet Hub, Margate Northwood Road
- The Senate building at the University of Kent
