Overview
- A post-mortem confirmed that Jack Bolam, 19, from Kingston Park in Newcastle, died from bacterial meningitis after a rapid decline in under 48 hours.
- He first said he felt cold, then became dizzy and sick, vomited at home, and suffered seizures before an ambulance took him to Newcastle’s Royal Victoria Infirmary.
- Doctors placed him in an induced coma in intensive care, and tests later found no brain activity, leading his family to withdraw life support.
- His mother urged people to act fast on possible symptoms and said a booster vaccine offered at ages 14 to 15 is not widely known.
- The family, supported by Meningitis Now, has raised about £3,500 for the charity, as concern grows following reports of two recent student deaths linked to a Kent outbreak.