'My daughter was found unconscious after horrendous meningitis seizure'
A mother was devastated to hear her 21-year-old daughter had a seizure caused by meningitis, initially thinking it was 'probably Covid'. Khali Goodwin, from Kent, said she woke up on Sunday (March 15) to voicemails from William Harvey Hospital in Ashford.They said her daughter, Keeleigh, had been taken to hospital after being found unconscious at her shared accommodation in Canterbury. This comes following a meningitis outbreak in the area, after which two people died and others were put into induced comas.The 39-year-old told KentLive: "Keeleigh rang me saying she has all these symptoms and everything, and I said 'that's probably Covid'. She kept saying her head was really bad, and she was feeling sick."Next thing I woke up in the morning to voicemails on my phone from the hospital and she had a seizure. She got up from bed, went into the bathroom, and she had seizure and she fell."Luckily enough, she's in a shared accommodation, and her housemate found her and rang an ambulance."Khali said she assumed her daughter had received all her vaccinations and never suspected bacterial meningitis. She said the past two days have been horrendous as a mum, seeing her in this state.She was able to visit Keeleigh in hospital yesterday while wearing a mask. She said: "It was just horrendous to see how she was yesterday (March 15) It's absolutely awful."It's frightened the life out of her. It's completely scared her, she's absolutely petrified she said she doesn't want to go out at all. I think this will be the one to completely and utterly change her life."Keeleigh is a full-time employee at McDonald's and went to Club Chemistry in Canterbury on Thursday (March 12) with her friends. The nightclub has addressed the outbreak saying "some people who may have attended Club Chemistry could have been affected by the current outbreak."It has since closed the venue for the rest of the week, meanwhile the origin of the outbreak has not been confirmed yet according to reports. Keeleigh will stay in hospital for a week her mum said.She added: "I went to see her yesterday because I obviously needed to make sure she was alright with my own eyes. But I've also got very small children at home I wore a mask and I've got to be so careful."Khali is urging anyone with symptoms to call 111 after her daughter’s illness started with just a fever. "It just slowly got worse and then she had the headache," she said. "She said she had never had headaches like it and said it was the worst headache she could possibly have had."The mum said she is grateful for her daughter's housemate, who found her in time. "Honestly that girl is amazing, she literally a lifesaver. If she hadn't found her, then I would have lost her."Two people have died due to the outbreak, including a student from the University of Kent and a Year 13 pupil Juliette from Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School in Faversham. A total of 11 people are currently 'seriously ill' in hospital.Trish Mannes, UKHSA Regional Deputy Director for the South East, reassured students and staff that close contacts of cases have been given antibiotics and that advice and support are being offered to the wider student community. She emphasised the importance of recognising symptoms of meningococcal meningitis and septicaemia, including fever, headache, vomiting, cold hands and feet, and a rash that does not fade when pressed.Symptoms of meningitis develop suddenly and can include:a high temperature (fever)being sicka headachea rash that does not fade when a glass is rolled over it (but a rash will not always develop)a stiff necka dislike of bright lightsdrowsiness or unresponsivenessseizures (fits)Hundreds of students have been queuing for antibiotics after two young people died in an outbreak of meningitis and others were admitted to hospital. One of those who died was a year 13 student called Juliette, who was described by her headteacher at Queen Elizabeth’s Grammar School in Faversham in Kent as “incredibly kind, thoughtful and intelligent”.The other person who died attended the University of Kent. The Press Association understands that some of those in hospital have been put into induced comas.A local nightclub said it has been contacted by officials to try and trace people who may be affected. The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has so far said it is aware of 13 cases with signs and symptoms of meningitis from Friday to Sunday in the Canterbury area of Kent.A spokeswoman for the UKHSA told the Press Association: “We can confirm that UKHSA has worked with the University of Kent to provide advice letters to all 16,000 students, advising on recent cases, signs and symptoms, how to obtain antibiotics, and what to do if they feel unwell.”Not all 16,000 students at the university will be given antibiotics. Amelia McIlroy, the headteacher of Queen Elizabeth’s Grammar School in Faversham, confirmed one of its year 13 pupils had died.She said: “It is with great sadness that we are confirming the loss of Juliette, a much loved and treasured member of our school community. Juliette was a student at our school for seven years."She was incredibly kind, thoughtful and intelligent and she loved our school and was very happy here. 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."We are all devastated. Our love and thoughts are with her family and friends at this terribly sad time.“Our priority now is the safety and well-being of all members of our school community and we are continuing to work closely with UKHSA.”Want to see more of the stories you love from the Irish Mirror? Making us your preferred source on Google means you’ll get more of our exclusives... 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