Five babies have died with whooping cough this year, UK health officials say
Five babies in England have died after being diagnosed with whooping cough, health officials have said amid a rapid rise in cases.
More than 2,700 whooping cough cases have been reported across England so far this year – more than three times the amount recorded in the whole of last year.
New UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) figures show there were 2,793 cases reported to the end of March.
This is compared with the 858 cases for the whole of 2023.
The UKHSA said there have been five infant deaths between January and the end of March.
“Whooping cough can affect people of all ages but for very young babies it can be extremely serious,” said UKHSA consultant epidemiologist Dr Gayatri Amirthalingam.
“Our thoughts and condolences are with those families who have so tragically lost their baby.”
There were 1,319 cases reported in March alone, according to the provisional data. There were 556 cases recorded in January and 918 in February.
Between January and the end of March, 108 babies under the age of three months were diagnosed with whooping cough. Some 51% of cases during this period were among those aged 15 and older.
The bacterial infection, also known as pertussis, affects the lungs and breathing tubes.
Whooping cough can be called the “100-day cough” because of how long it can take to recover from it, and it spreads very easily.
Pregnant women are being urged to take up the offer of the whooping cough vaccine so they can pass on protection to their babies, which should last until they are old enough to get vaccinated themselves.
NHS national medical director Professor Sir Stephen Powis said: “With cases of whooping cough continuing to rise sharply across the country, and today’s figures sadly showing five infant deaths, it is vital that families come forward to get the protection they need.
“If you are pregnant and have not been vaccinated yet, or your child is not up-to-date with whooping cough or other routine vaccinations, please contact your GP as soon as possible, and if you or your child show symptoms ask for an urgent GP appointment or get help from NHS 111.”
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Health officials describe whooping cough as a “cyclical disease”, meaning it peaks every three to five years, with the last big increase in 2016.
The UKHSA said the impact of the COVID pandemic means there is “reduced immunity in the population”, while vaccine uptake has fallen in recent years for both pregnant women and children.
The NHS recommends all pregnant women are vaccinated against whooping cough between 16 and 32 weeks with immunity passing through the placenta to protect newborn babies in their first weeks of life.
UKHSA said the first signs of whooping cough are similar to a cold, such as a runny nose and sore throat, but after about a week, the infection can develop into coughing bouts that last for a few minutes and are typically worse at night.
Young babies may also make a distinctive “whoop” or have difficulty breathing after a bout of coughing, though not all babies make this noise which means whooping cough can be hard to recognise.
The crash involving a cargo ship and oil tanker off the East Yorkshire coast is bad news for the sea, fish and air in the area. What we don’t know yet is quite how bad it will be.
That depends on a few things – but the speed of the collision, clouds of filthy black smoke from the fires and the leaked fuel are certainly worrying.
Firstly, it matters what was on board those two massive vessels.
Follow live: Jet fuel spilling into sea after tanker collision
Analytics firm Vortexa estimates the 183m-long tanker was carrying about 130,000 barrels of jet fuel (kerosene), which is now leaking into the sea.
Jet fuel is not as sticky or viscous as heavier types of oil, thankfully, so it’s less likely to clog the feathers and fur of birds and seals. It can also be broken down by natural bacteria.
But it can still poison fish and kill animals and plants on the shoreline if it makes its way into the soil there.
The Marine Conservation Society has pointed out the site in the Humber estuary is close to some protected areas and is important for seabirds and harbour porpoises.
And both ships will have been powered by a dirtier, heavier kind of oil – likely marine gas oil or heavy fuel oil, though we don’t know the details yet.
Heavy fuel oil is nasty stuff.
Pic: Bartek Smialek/PA
Cheap, thick and tar-like, it can smother animals and is very dangerous if they consume it, and is extremely difficult to clean up. Let’s hope this isn’t creeping around the North Sea already.
We don’t know how much of either the jet fuel or the oil powering the ships has leaked, or how much will be burned off in the violent fires – which themselves are ploughing black smoke and filthy air pollution into the surrounding atmosphere.
And we don’t know for sure what was on the Solong cargo ship and if, or what, will go into the sea.
Cargo ship ‘had sodium cyanide on board’
It was carrying 15 containers of sodium cyanide among other cargo, according to a report from maritime data provider Lloyd’s List Intelligence.
The container vessel was also transporting an unknown quantity of alcohol, said the casualty report – an assessment of incidents at sea – citing a message from the local coastguard.
Plastic takes hundreds of years to break down, and potentially can choke or trap animals.
Many of us have seen that uncomfortable viral video of a turtle having a straw yanked out of its nose. Previous accidents on cargo ships have seen plastic Lego pieces wash up in Cornwall 25 years later.
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Secondly, the impact depends on the sea and weather conditions around it.
Things like the wind and currents affect how an oil spill spreads in the sea. Scientists can draw up computer models to simulate how the oil could behave.
Thirdly, it matters how quickly this is all tackled and then cleaned up, if necessary, and if it can be.
Usually the slower the response, the worse the impact.
The coastguard has said the incident “remains ongoing” and it has started assessing the “likely counter pollution response” that will be required.
Such a response might need the help of numerous public bodies: the government environment department, the transport department, the Environment Agency and the Maritime and Coastguard Agency.
So for now the best we can hope for – aside from the welfare of the people involved – is that not all the oil is spilled or burnt, that conditions are calm and that rescuers and those cleaning up can work swiftly.
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