Two dead and dozens at risk in meningitis outbreak linked to Canterbury nightclub

Thousands of people are being urged to get antibiotics in an effort to stop the spread of deadly meningitis beyond Kent, where two students have died and 11 are ill in hospital.

The outbreak, believed to have spread at Canterbury’s Club Chemistry nearly two weeks ago, has killed a Year 13 pupil in Faversham named Juliette and a student at the University of Kent.

Juliette’s father told the BBC that the family is ‘beyond devastated and they have no words to express their loss’.

Louise Jones-Roberts, the owner of Club Chemistry, said a staff member at the club has been confirmed to have contracted meningitis and is doing well with treatment. Two others with suspected meningitis have since been cleared of the infection.

She said more than 2,000 people would have visited the venue over the three dates identified by health officials – March 5, 6, and 7.

Those who visited now need to be traced for antibiotics.

Ms. Jones-Roberts said she believed more than one case was connected to mingling at the club and she had ‘been told they started showing symptoms on March 10’.

She said she had managed to contact around 90 out of 95 staff members at the club and they had gone to get antibiotics.

Ms. Jones-Roberts said: ‘I’m devastated for the families affected. It’s so incredibly sad.

‘I just really hope people know the symptoms and no more lives are lost.’

She said the club would remain closed until further notice, adding: ‘It is not a hard decision to close – we are talking about people’s lives.’

Health officials have said some cases of meningitis seen in Kent have been confirmed as meningitis B.

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), which is investigating the outbreak, said it would confirm the strain seen in other cases ‘when we have the full results’.

The majority of young people born before 2015 are not protected against meningitis B unless they have had the jab privately.

It was introduced on the NHS for babies in 2015.

The deputy director of the immunization and vaccine-preventable diseases division at the UKHSA, Dr. Gayatri Amirthalingam, denied there had been a delay in responding to the meningitis outbreak.

She told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: ‘I think it’s important to stress that early on, there were only individual cases, and it actually needs further detailed follow-up with those cases to work out the links between the different cases.

‘And you’d appreciate with these individuals, some of whom are extremely unwell in hospital, it can be difficult to try and ascertain detailed follow-up information.

‘But that was really – to be fair – done very rapidly over the weekend, to be able to give that information out and identify the links within 24 hours.

‘In reflection, people in the local teams acted very, very quickly.

‘I don’t believe there’s been any delay in terms of the public health response.’

The UKHSA has issued advice to 16,000 staff and students at the University of Kent, where antibiotics are also being offered to those who need them.

Amelia McIlroy, the headteacher of Queen Elizabeth’s Grammar School in Faversham, confirmed one of its Year 13 pupils had died.

She said: ‘Juliette embraced everything that school had to offer with great enthusiasm and joy, and her humour and positivity were captivating.

‘She was a genuinely caring and attentive listener, a true friend – who listened with warmth, respect, and sincere interest to her peers and to our staff.

‘In short, she was a lovely girl – her beautiful smile, her loving nature, and her sense of fun will be hugely missed.

The headmaster of Simon Langton Grammar School for Boys said in a letter to parents that one of their Year 13 students has been admitted to hospital with meningitis.

An update sent to parents at Norton Knatchbull School in Ashford, Kent, also confirmed a diagnosis for a Year 13 student admitted to hospital.

A University of Kent spokesperson said on Monday it was taking advice from the UKHSA and communicating with students and staff.

It said that there will be no in-person assessments or exams for students this week.

Those who attended Club Chemistry 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; and the Senate building at the University of Kent.

Elsewhere, a former health minister said the Government should consider a ‘catch-up’ vaccination campaign for young people.

Helen Whately, Conservative MP for Faversham and Mid Kent, told Times Radio: ‘One of the things that the Government (and) UKHSA will need to look at is if there is now a greater risk around this outbreak – and in future should there be some kind of vaccination catch-up for that group.’

She said there were questions about whether the UKHSA could have acted sooner in informing the public about what had happened.