An “explosive” meningitis outbreak is unprecedented, officers say.
GMB hosts addresses ‘nationwide incident’ after tragic demise announcement (Picture: ITV)
Good Morning Britain presenters Susanna Reid and Ed Balls addressed the meningitis outbreak in Kent, which is now being handled as a “national-level” incident. The top of the UK Well being Safety Company referred to as the explosive nature of it “unprecedented”. The variety of confirmed instances of “invasive” meningitis within the Canterbury space stands at 15, with a “focused vaccination programme” introduced on the College of Kent.
Two individuals have died following the outbreak of meningitis B, together with a 21-year-old college pupil and Juliette, a sixth-form pupil at Queen Elizabeth’s Grammar Faculty in Faversham. A nine-month-old child woman has additionally been admitted to a kids’s hospital in London after changing into unwell and is reported to be going through life-changing surgical procedure.
Throughout Wednesday’s version of the ITV morning present, the hosts halted the programme for an pressing announcement. Susanna started, “Good morning, Britain… breaking information. 20 instances of meningitis have now been recognized by officers. A nine-month outdated woman is in intensive care with the an infection. Her case will not be being linked to the College of Kent outbreak.” Each Susanna and Ed spoke to correspondent Nick Dixon, who delivered an replace.
Ed started: “Hundreds of scholars being supplied a vaccination however do authorities assume they will really include this outbreak?”
Nick replied: “That’s the problem for them in the meanwhile. The college try to mobilise as many workers and assets as they will to get this focused vaccination programme.”
He defined that both Thursday or Friday is when they are going to start to vaccinate as much as 5,000 college students with pop-up clinics.
The correspondent remarked: “We have now additionally been listening to {that a} nine-month outdated child woman is now in intensive care affected by meningitis.”
The Meningitis outbreak in Kent is now being handled as a ‘national-level’ incident, with the pinnacle of the UK Well being Safety Company calling the explosive nature of it ‘unprecedented’.
15 instances of Meningitis B have been confirmed to this point – with two individuals dying from the illness. A… pic.twitter.com/bkGBm8oGun
— Good Morning Britain (@GMB) March 18, 2026
Susan Hopkins, chief govt of the UK Well being Safety Company (UKHSA), stated there was an “explosive nature” to the outbreak, whereas deputy chief medical officer Dr Thomas Waite stated it was the quickest rising outbreak he had seen in his profession.
Well being Secretary Wes Streeting described it as an unprecedented outbreak and a “quickly growing scenario”.
Hopkins stated it appeared as if there had been a “tremendous spreader occasion”, with the outbreak ongoing inside college halls of residences, the place there would have been events and social mixing.
The UKHSA declared a nationwide incident on Sunday to assist guarantee provides of antibiotics.
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