Health authorities have widened a meningitis B (MenB) vaccination campaign after an outbreak linked to a Canterbury nightclub, prompting long lines of university students seeking protection.
The UK Health Security Agency now says anyone who visited Club Chemistry between 5 and 15 March is eligible for a jab.
The offer has also been extended to sixth form pupils in affected areas and to people who have already been prescribed preventive antibiotics.
Officials say 27 confirmed or suspected cases are connected to the cluster, and two young people have died: a 21-year-old University of Kent student and an 18-year-old sixth former.
A case at a higher education institution in London has been identified as directly linked to the Canterbury incident.
Demand for vaccines has overwhelmed local clinics.
More than 100 students were turned away on Thursday because staff needed to finish for the day, though NHS England reported at least 1,600 doses had been given by that evening.
To cope with demand, a new centre will open at Faversham Health Centre with jabs available from 09:00 on Friday, and vaccinations will also be offered at the Vicarage Lane Clinic in Ashford.
Several people linked to the outbreak remain in hospital, including three members of the university’s cheerleading squad and two Club Chemistry staff.
A supermarket employee who attended the venue has also tested positive.
The outbreak has disrupted campus life and the wider city.
Many students have stayed indoors or gone home, events and rugby fixtures have been suspended, and local businesses report cancelled bookings and fewer customers.
The UKHSA has issued guidance to clinicians to watch for meningitis symptoms while investigators study the strain, which officials say has been circulating for several years.
The agency’s chief described the early spread as unusually rapid but noted that past outbreaks have generally been brought under control with public-health measures.
MenB is the leading cause of meningococcal meningitis in the UK, and routine immunisation only began in 2015, leaving many older teenagers unvaccinated.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting has reassured the public that the overall risk is very low and encouraged people to continue with normal activities while getting vaccinated if eligible.
Club Chemistry’s owner has said the venue will remain closed until health authorities consider the situation safe.
Local vaccination efforts are continuing as officials work to contain the outbreak and protect those at risk.
