Meningitis outbreak in Canterbury University : Two young people are dead

[arista]

Sky News Text :
[Two young people are dead, and 11 are seriously ill
after a meningitis outbreak in Canterbury,
says the Daily Mail.

It reports the outbreak is believed to be linked to
a social event in the Kent city.]

https://liveblog.digitalimages.sky/lc-images-sky/lcimg-6414f4c3-5df1-4540-874b-1e89dcc8b10c.jpeg

[MTVN]

I don't think I've ever heard of a meningitis 'outbreak', just the occasional isolated case. I had no idea it could even actually spread person to person, and certainly not just at a 'social event'

[arista]

Yes, a rare meningitis

[Rare and dangerous forms of meningitis include
Fungal meningitis, Tuberculous (TB) meningitis,
Group A streptococcal (GAS) meningitis,
and certain rare strains of Invasive Meningococcal Disease.
These infections are generally severe,
requiring rapid medical intervention,
and some are increasing.]

Was it brought in by a Migrant ?

[arista]

The Head of School
gave respect to the young lady who died from this.

She said
her lovely Smile and positive attitude
will be missed.


It spreads fast on kissing

[Glenn.]

Universities are full of thousands of students living and partying together. That’s how meningitis spreads. It’s been happening for decades. Not everything is migrants, as easy and lazy as it is to blame them for everything.

[Crimson Dynamo]

The Telegraph understands health officials had been alerted to cases two days earlier,
prompting questions about why public alerts were delayed. Meningitis typically has an
incubation period of three to five days.

[arista]

https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2026/03/16/14/107172667-15650903-Students_queue_at_the_University_of_Kent_in_Canter bury_today_ami-a-30_1773672638220.jpg
[Students queue at the University of Kent
in Canterbury today amid the meningitis outbreak]


All the Students are waiting in a line,
to receive their Anti-biotic

[bots]

My cousin got meningitis many, many years ago. She was very ill but pulled through. It can be infectious.

[Cherie]

I don't think I've ever heard of a meningitis 'outbreak', just the occasional isolated case. I had no idea it could even actually spread person to person, and certainly not just at a 'social event'

Yeah apparently they have determined it was a nightclub, I thought there was a vaccination you could have, I recall my two having a vac before Uni

[arista]

The Head of School
gave respect to the young lady who died from this.

She said
her lovely Smile and positive attitude
will be missed.

A Medical Doctor Stated today:
It spreads fast on kissing



https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2026/03/16/14/107174983-15650903-Headmistress_Amelia_Mcilroy_of_Queen_Elizabeth_Gra mmer_School_in-a-36_1773672726891.jpg

[Headmistress Amelia Milroy
of Queen Elizabeth Grammar School
in Faversham makes a statement today
about her student Juliette who died
from meningitis in the outbreak in Kent]

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-15650903/daughter-meningitis-nightclub-birthday.html

[MTVN]

Yeah apparently they have determined it was a nightclub, I thought there was a vaccination you could have, I recall my two having a vac before Uni

I think I read something saying the vaccine take-up is about 75%. I remember there was a big drive in my school to get everyone vaccinated because one of the pupils in my year died from it. He had just felt unwell one evening with a bit of a headache and had died a day or two later. Scary stuff

[arista]

https://liveblog.digitalimages.sky/lc-images-sky/lcimg-9a58aa4e-3d97-48cb-a1fd-eefbcd1e9d45.jpeg

[arista]

https://liveblog.digitalimages.sky/lc-images-sky/lcimg-3821c7ae-e80f-4e95-a5e7-ca6ac6cc9dd1.jpeg

[arista]

Poor Juliette

https://liveblog.digitalimages.sky/lc-images-sky/lcimg-cd4e4ff7-6d01-4b8e-9564-7c4903a24642.jpeg

[arista]

Sky News Text:
[The mother of a teenager who was treated in hospital
for meningitis claims she caught the disease after sharing
a vape while out clubbing, reports The Sun.]

https://liveblog.digitalimages.sky/lc-images-sky/lcimg-0d301368-045e-4c27-9e3f-86c52ad2f737.jpeg

[Redway]

Universities are full of thousands of students living and partying together. That’s how meningitis spreads. It’s been happening for decades. Not everything is migrants, as easy and lazy as it is to blame them for everything.

Firmly agreed. Bringing immigration into something as randomly unrelated as this is an enormous stretch, I can’t lie. Whoever it comes from. Below the belt.

[Mystic Mock]

The Head of School
gave respect to the young lady who died from this.

She said
her lovely Smile and positive attitude
will be missed.


It spreads fast on kissing

Well I thankfully don't kiss people.:cool:

But seriously, I hope that this problem doesn't become an Epidemic.

[Ammi]

Universities are full of thousands of students living and partying together. That’s how meningitis spreads. It’s been happening for decades. Not everything is migrants, as easy and lazy as it is to blame them for everything.

….yeah as you say, it’s a health threat that I can recall being present for decades …there were a few cases one time at our local community college many years ago and one resulted in permanent life changing health damage for one student, which is also not uncommon to happen…although there are vaccinations, they sadly don't protect against all strains of bacterial…(…contagious forms…)…of meningitis… incredibly sad for the two deaths in Canterbury atm…as if the world wasn’t threatening enough right now and meningitis enters the arena…just horrendous…

[Ammi]

….from a BBC news article…

Meningitis B, known as MenB, is the strain behind outbreak of cases in Kent, the UK Health Security Agency tells the BBC

Routine vaccination against MenB for babies and young children was rolled out from 2015 - so the current generation of students and others in their late teens have not been covered, our health editor writes

Why is the MenB vaccine not given to teenagers in the UK?

It comes after the family of a teenager who died in the outbreak said they were "beyond devastated" and have "no words to express their loss"

Juliette, an 18-year-old A-level student, is remembered as "genuinely caring" by her school's headteacher - separately, a 21-year-old student who has not been identified has also died

Three schools and the University of Kent have confirmed cases as thousands of people are contacted in the Canterbury area over the outbreak

The University of Kent says there will be no in-person exams and assessments this week, with the student union also cancelling all events

High temperature, vomiting, confusion - what are the symptoms of meningitis?


…full article…

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/ce8n9vd5r09t

[Zizu]

Tv doctor just warning that it’s spreading through , close contact , kissing and sharing vapes

[Crimson Dynamo]

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/HDlFDQaW0AAYaLj?format=jpg&name=small

[arista]

PM Starmer should offer the Vaccine/Meds Free

The Students have to buy it.
This is why it stopped being taken up

[arista]

The Health Secretary now live in
Parliament is talking about the new outbreak

On all TV News

[arista]

The Health Secretary
said the Antibiotics
you must take the full course.

That will halt it

[Vicky.]

Didn't know it was contagious..

[arista]

Didn't know it was contagious..


Someone brought it to that
Kent Nightclub - now closed

Coughed on someone
or somthing other

One mother said her daughter shared a Vape....


Are all the Club workers British?

[arista]

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/HDlFDQaW0AAYaLj?format=jpg&name=small


Yes, this can not be ignored

[Glenn.]

The belt exists because a very specific climate combination increases transmission:
• Dry Harmattan winds
• Dust in the air
• Long dry seasons
• Dense settlements in parts of the Sahel

These factors make it easier for meningococcal bacteria to spread through respiratory droplets.

Since about 2010, mass vaccination campaigns using the MenAfriVac vaccine drastically reduced the huge epidemics caused by meningococcal group A. Cases still happen, but the scale of outbreaks has fallen significantly.

[Crimson Dynamo]

Yes, this can not be ignored

Nor can the area of the UK where this has happened...

[arista]

Nor can the area of the UK where this has happened...


A staff member gives out masks

Yes once again from 7AM
More young students lined up at the University
to get the life-saving Antibiotics

https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2026/03/17/14/107204879-15653061-image-a-7_1773757366903.jpg


Reports over 700
so far

[arista]

https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2026/03/17/14/107204917-15653061-image-a-32_1773757478788.jpg

[Ammi]

PM Starmer should offer the Vaccine/Meds Free

The Students have to buy it.
This is why it stopped being taken up

…bang on right, Arista…

[Cherie]

Its an unprecedented outbreak it might have been around for decades but this level of outbreak is unusual according to the Health Minister

[Cherie]

Didn't know it was contagious..

This is why the vac is givn to Uni and College students as they mix socially alot looks like the vac hasn't been offered or there is a low take up, I am sure that will change

[Ammi]

Its an unprecedented outbreak it might have been around for decades but this level of outbreak is unusual according to the Health Minister

…it does make me think whether it’s also connected in any way to lockdown times/isolation etc and the lowering of immunities that could have contributed to this outbreak now…

[Crimson Dynamo]

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/content/dam/news/2026/03/17/TELEMMGLPICT000473659117_17737575768090_trans_NvBQ zQNjv4BqRo0U4xU-30oDveS4pXV-Vv4Xpit_DMGvdp2n7FDd82k.jpeg?imwidth=500
Mrs Jones-Roberts said her staff dismissed the Instagram message as fake


Health officials used Instagram to inform the nightclub at the centre of the deadly meningitis outbreak about a confirmed case.

Louise Jones-Roberts, the owner of Club Chemistry in Canterbury, told The Telegraph that staff initially thought the message was a hoax because it came from an unverified individual account, rather than directly from the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA).

The message said there had been a confirmed case involving a guest at the venue and that staff needed to contact the agency “urgently”.

However, when the club tried to call the government body on the number provided, no one answered.

The infection is believed to have spread at the Canterbury nightclub almost two weeks ago. At least two patients began showing symptoms after going there on March 6.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/03/17/health-officials-deny-acting-too-slowly-over-meningitis-out/

[bots]

it could have mutated and become more infectious. Pure speculation from me of course, but something must have changed for people to become more vulnerable to it than previously

[Cherie]

…it does make me think whether it’s also connected in any way to lockdown times/isolation etc and the lowering of immunities that could have contributed to this outbreak now…

It certainly a possibility

[Redway]

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/HDlFDQaW0AAYaLj?format=jpg&name=small

Meningitis is a worldwide problem. It’s not Ebola. Take your disgusting racism elsewhere. I don’t know how you people get away with it.

[arista]

13 students remain in the hospital

[Crimson Dynamo]

Awful state of affairs, so many people must be worried and terrified in Kent

[Crimson Dynamo]

🚨 BREAKING: The meningitis outbreak has been declared a "national incident"
with the first case now reported in London

[Glenn.]

Awful state of affairs, so many people must be worried and terrified in Kent

Not particularly

[Cherie]

Baby critically ill, this is from 4th March

https://www.msn.com/en-gb/health/other/baby-critically-ill-as-unprecedented-meningitis-outbreak-spreads/ar-AA1YR9Qr?ocid=msedgntp&pc=LCTS&cvid=69b9dd823405485491e69775b47a4c64&ei=7

[arista]

https://liveblog.digitalimages.sky/lc-images-sky/lcimg-6f133ead-6d07-4de8-a6ba-988844ee7d2d.jpeg

[arista]

https://liveblog.digitalimages.sky/lc-images-sky/lcimg-eb8382c2-4fe7-467a-b744-ef2a33458dc7.jpeg

[arista]

https://liveblog.digitalimages.sky/lc-images-sky/lcimg-d74a9761-f61a-4d16-8e64-6fba19313bdc.jpeg

[MTVN]

Five new cases this morning, good thing the students are now travelling back home across the country for Easter...

[arista]

20 cases now, including the 2 dead


Also a baby girl in a London Hospital
not connected to Kent.

GMB ITV update

[Ammi]

Five new cases this morning, good thing the students are now travelling back home across the country for Easter...

…not just travelling home across the country for Easter but travelling to overseas destinations as well for the Easter break…/…could this be yet another pandemic situation…

Many people carry the bacteria or viruses that cause meningitis in their nose or throat without getting sick, yet they can still spread it to others. The infection is primarily transmitted via respiratory droplets (coughing, kissing, sharing items) during this asymptomatic "carrier"

[Cherie]

…not just travelling home across the country for Easter but travelling to overseas destinations as well for the Easter break…/…could this be yet another pandemic situation…

Many people carry the bacteria or viruses that cause meningitis in their nose or throat without getting sick, yet they can still spread it to others. The infection is primarily transmitted via respiratory droplets (coughing, kissing, sharing items) during this asymptomatic "carrier"

I dont think so, for one there is already a vaccination, I am not sure how much it is pushed I remember just seeing it by chance before my two went to Uni and hauling them off to the GP, there needs to be a big government push to get kids vaccinated in Sixth Form or before

[Ammi]

I dont think so, for one there is already a vaccination, I am not sure how much it is pushed I remember just seeing it by chance before my two went to Uni and hauling them off to the GP, there needs to be a big government push to get kids vaccinated in Sixth Form or before

…(…I was reading earlier/according to the National Pharmacy Association…)…that pharmacies have and are running out of supplies of the vaccine …because of the outbreak atm I’m thinking…and that wholesalers also don’t have supplies or have very little…hopefully that can all be addressed so that those who need it, have the vaccine very quickly but there is obviously an ongoing situation as well with fuel/oil that could impact hugely any re-stocking of supplies being where they need to be…

[bots]

glad i kept my masks from covid times

[Ammi]

glad i kept my masks from covid times

…I’ve continued to wear one at times because I have very regular hospital visits…

[bots]

…I’ve continued to wear one at times because I have very regular hospital visits…

yeah me too

[arista]

Some of these Students
have been working/training in nurseries

Also, that Baby in the London Hospital
came from Kent.

GMB ITV reported

[rusticgal]

I have been informed that anyone born before 2015 will not have been immunised against Meningitis B...they would through their schools have been immunised for Meningitis C but not B.
Check with your GP surgery...

[Crimson Dynamo]

I have been informed that anyone born before 2015 will not have been immunised against Meningitis B...they would through their schools have been immunised for Meningitis C but not B.
Check with your GP surgery...

The MenB vaccine has been offered to babies born on or after 1st May 2015.
Most people born before this date will not have been offered the MenB vaccine
through the NHS routine immunisation schedule. This vaccine is also
recommended for people with certain long-term health conditions who are at
greater risk.

[Cherie]

I have been informed that anyone born before 2015 will not have been immunised against Meningitis B...they would through their schools have been immunised for Meningitis C but not B.
Check with your GP surgery...

oh interesting thats a huge cohort of young people

[bots]

oh interesting thats a huge cohort of young people

its basically saying that anyone aged 11 or older is at risk

[Cherie]

its basically saying that anyone aged 11 or older is at risk

They need to roll out a vaccination programme in schools like they do with the flu vaccine over the winter period

[rusticgal]

Yesterday we were pushing Patients down the private route but really Surgeries should be taking responsibiity imo...
Will update later when I am home from work as I believe there has been an update. But contact your Surgery and see what they advise. If you don't have access to your records then you can get a print out of your immunisations by going to the Surgery.

[Cherie]

Yesterday we were pushing Patients down the private route but really Surgeries should be taking responsibiity imo...
Will update later when I am home from work as I believe there has been an update. But contact your Surgery and see what they advise. If you don't have access to your records then you can get a print out of your immunisations by going to the Surgery.

Thanks Rusti will need to check

[arista]

Sky News Live
Just confirmed a 2nd Kent University
There is a case of meningitis in a student.

[arista]

glad i kept my masks from covid times


Yes, worth keeping.

[arista]

From Ch5 Live News
5PM - 6PM
One Kent GP can not get a supply of the medicines.

I think this will get worse.

[Friendlykev92]

From Ch5 Live News
5PM - 6PM
One Kent GP can not get a supply of the medicines.

I think this will get worse.
It's a bit of a worry no doubt about it

[Vanessa]

All we can do is be careful in social settings.

[Vanessa]

Yes, worth keeping.

Only inside. I wouldn't were one outside.

[Vanessa]

Yesterday we were pushing Patients down the private route but really Surgeries should be taking responsibiity imo...
Will update later when I am home from work as I believe there has been an update. But contact your Surgery and see what they advise. If you don't have access to your records then you can get a print out of your immunisations by going to the Surgery.

It's so expensive. I'll just have to be careful!

[Zizu]

It's so expensive. I'll just have to be careful!


No kissing , no vape sharing .. can’t remember the other rules and suggestions

Take care !!!!

[Vanessa]

No kissing , no vape sharing .. can’t remember the other rules and suggestions

Take care !!!!

I'm very single, so no chance of that. Lol

[Ammi]

From Ch5 Live News
5PM - 6PM
One Kent GP can not get a supply of the medicines.

I think this will get worse.


…yeah this is what I said earlier in the thread that I’d read this morning that some pharmacies have either run out or are running out of the vaccine and that many wholesalers don’t have supplies atm either…it wasn’t a media article, it was a National Pharmacy Association update…

[Cherie]

rench authorities delayed telling Britain that an exchange student had contracted meningitis, The Telegraph can reveal.

The student had returned to France from the University of Kent.

The French health ministry told The Telegraph it had been aware of the meningitis case on March 12.

https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/uknews/france-failed-to-tell-britain-about-kent-meningitis-case-for-48-hours/ar-AA1YUQon?ocid=msedgntp&pc=LCTS&cvid=69bafe05924a4bf8a8ad46bfba5086b7&ei=32

[Vanessa]

The vaccine costs hundreds of pounds, if you can get it.
No thanks, I don't need it. Seems like a cash grab to me.
They have meningitis cases every year. This isn't a first,

[Mystic Mock]

https://liveblog.digitalimages.sky/lc-images-sky/lcimg-eb8382c2-4fe7-467a-b744-ef2a33458dc7.jpeg

I imagine that most people know not to share drinks, surely?:laugh:

[Ammi]

…it is being reported as quite baffling to experts as to how quickly it’s spread and spreading in that particular area, what circumstances are so specific and so exceptional etc as this is such an unprecedented outbreak…although the nightclub environment gave for close contact, there were no apparent exceptional circumstances of behaviours that don’t happen regularly with students and the close contact associated with contracting the virus is generally a prolonged one of living together etc….its worrying as to why in this particular area, there seems more vulnerability…

[Livia]

Spread to a second university now...

[Crimson Dynamo]

It’s not an airborne pathogen

[arista]

https://liveblog.digitalimages.sky/lc-images-sky/lcimg-e5104341-2211-4da2-9a18-08e20fc0847c.jpeg

[arista]

New 7 more infections


27 in total,

Confirmed now
from the same area

[Vanessa]

Have you noticed the streaks in the sky? I wonder what that was :suspect:

[bots]

It’s not an airborne pathogen

but if you are wearing a mask, it's a lot more difficult to gob on someone else

I'm not actually getting this concept of people sharing vapes. Who wants to share the germs in someone else's mouth? Also, has this happened because the government banned disposable vapes?

The other thing is, i thought the bacteria lived in 20% of the population's nasal passages and they remain unbothered throughout their lives.

[Oliver_W]

rench authorities delayed telling Britain that an exchange student had contracted meningitis, The Telegraph can reveal.

The student had returned to France from the University of Kent.

The French health ministry told The Telegraph it had been aware of the meningitis case on March 12.

https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/uknews/france-failed-to-tell-britain-about-kent-meningitis-case-for-48-hours/ar-AA1YUQon?ocid=msedgntp&pc=LCTS&cvid=69bafe05924a4bf8a8ad46bfba5086b7&ei=32

The French not only allow illegal migrants to pour through, but they also deliberately send diseases here?

Lovely neighbours.

[bots]

The French not only allow illegal migrants to pour through, but they also deliberately send diseases here?

Lovely neighbours.

the person was in kent and returned to france with the infection

[Crimson Dynamo]

but if you are wearing a mask, it's a lot more difficult to gob on someone else

I'm not actually getting this concept of people sharing vapes. Who wants to share the germs in someone else's mouth? Also, has this happened because the government banned disposable vapes?

The other thing is, i thought the bacteria lived in 20% of the population's nasal passages and they remain unbothered throughout their lives.

1 in 4 have it in the back of their throat

[bots]

1 in 4 have it in the back of their throat

and its up to 50% in the young. To me, it looks like the bacteria has mutated and is able to break through normal protections. In which case we can expect 20%+ of the population to get it

[arista]

It has been reported
Many parents of youths
They are now buying the Vaccine:
Sold as two parts

[Privately purchasing two doses of the Meningitis B (Bexsero)
vaccine typically costs around £220 on the UK high street,
with prices varying by provider]

[Oliver_W]

How likely is it to spread to the Midlands?

[Vanessa]

The vaccine supply is limited. Leave it for the group most at risk.

[Crimson Dynamo]

How likely is it to spread to the Midlands?

Its not really spread anywhere. Someone who caught it in Kent went to London and they were diagnosed there. You could only consider this as "spread" if that person went on to infect people in London.

[bots]

i think we need to see what happens over the next few weeks. If all the students get vaccinated in the next week or so, it's got nowhere to go and it will just fizzle out.

[arista]

The vaccine supply is limited. Leave it for the group most at risk.


Of Course,

But the problem is
Some parents are buying it legally at the chemists


So Supply could go down.

[Cherie]

Of Course,

But the problem is
Some parents are buying it legally at the chemists


So Supply could go down.

Its up to parents to decide what is best for their kids

Just heard a Dad who has a son at Christchurch Uni which is in the same town Canterbury is very small and there is just one nightclub.... and they havent been offered anything.

[Crimson Dynamo]

its up to parents to decide what is best for their kids

just heard a dad who has a son at christchurch uni which is in the same town canterbury is very small and there is just one nightclub.... And they havent been offered anything.

terrible worry for parents in that area

[Vanessa]

Of Course,

But the problem is
Some parents are buying it legally at the chemists


So Supply could go down.

And it's not even here in London. :facepalm:

[arista]

Many children over 11year old
never received this important Vaccine

One Young Lady Sophie (one of the two dead)
was dead within 24 hours of it.

Shocking.

[arista]

And it's not even here in London. :facepalm:

One has now been reported in London

I hope it is connected to Kent cases


https://www.standard.co.uk/news/uk/meningitis-outbreak-latest-cases-kent-canterbury-christ-church-ukhsa-b1275552.html

[Cherie]

And it's not even here in London. :facepalm:

Parents are quiet rightly worried, and its their option to do as they see fit without judgement

[Vanessa]

Parents are quiet rightly worried, and its their option to do as they see fit without judgement

But the supply is limited.

[bots]

But the supply is limited.

they can easily produce more

[Vanessa]

they can easily produce more

Yes I hope so.

[Cherie]

But the supply is limited.

No it isn't

[Mystic Mock]

i think we need to see what happens over the next few weeks. If all the students get vaccinated in the next week or so, it's got nowhere to go and it will just fizzle out.

:fc:

We don't need another Covid situation.

[Vanessa]

Let those who need it get vaccinated first. I'll gladly wait for mine.

[bots]

They are fairly confident that the peak is over now and there will be minimal spread to other areas, but they need to monitor it over time. They have already ordered more vaccine just in case it's needed.

[Vanessa]

They are fairly confident that the peak is over now and there will be minimal spread to other areas, but they need to monitor it over time. They have already ordered more vaccine just in case it's needed.

That's brilliant news

[arista]

29 cases now

[MTVN]

Something very very strange is going on

[Crimson Dynamo]

Something very very strange is going on

The MSM have given up on the "story"?

[Mystic Mock]

They are fairly confident that the peak is over now and there will be minimal spread to other areas, but they need to monitor it over time. They have already ordered more vaccine just in case it's needed.

:fc: That the worst of it really is over.