New Delhi, March 19 -- A meningitis outbreak in southeast England has led to the deaths of a university student and a pupil from a nearby school, prompting public health officials to quickly roll out medical interventions.

The outbreak in the county of Kent was described Wednesday as unprecedented by U.K. Health Secretary Wes Streeting, owing to the high number of cases appearing in such a short space of time. The first case was confirmed on Friday, and they had risen to 20 by Wednesday.

Most of them were linked to the University of Kent in the historic cathedral city of Canterbury. Students, many of whom have gone home for an end of term break, are being offered antibiotics as well as a vaccination against the strain identified as the ...