Asylum seeker dies from meningitis
An asylum seeker who was housed in the Traiskirchen reception centre in Lower Austria has died of infectious meningitis.
The 24-year-old man from Somalia arrived in Austria in June and was taken to Baden hospital two days ago. He was later transferred to a hospital in Vienna, where he died on Thursday.
According to some reports, the man not only had bacterial meningitis, but was also HIV positive.
The Interior Ministry has been in talks with the Health Ministry and all the asylum seekers in Traiskirchen will be given prophylactic antibiotics and will not be allowed to leave the centre until they have completed the treatment, which will prevent them from getting infected.
Meningitis is an acute inflammation of the protective membranes covering the brain and spinal cord.
Traiskirchen’s mayor Andreas Babler (SPÖ) said he had only learnt of the case through media reports, and that it was “tragic when something like this happens”. He said he would also like to know who’s responsible for not noticing the symptoms of the disease sooner.
The Traiskirchen centre has been in the news recently due to the fact that it is completely overcrowded. It is only supposed to hold 480 asylum seekers but more than three times that number are accommodated there at present.
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The 24-year-old man from Somalia arrived in Austria in June and was taken to Baden hospital two days ago. He was later transferred to a hospital in Vienna, where he died on Thursday.
According to some reports, the man not only had bacterial meningitis, but was also HIV positive.
The Interior Ministry has been in talks with the Health Ministry and all the asylum seekers in Traiskirchen will be given prophylactic antibiotics and will not be allowed to leave the centre until they have completed the treatment, which will prevent them from getting infected.
Meningitis is an acute inflammation of the protective membranes covering the brain and spinal cord.
Traiskirchen’s mayor Andreas Babler (SPÖ) said he had only learnt of the case through media reports, and that it was “tragic when something like this happens”. He said he would also like to know who’s responsible for not noticing the symptoms of the disease sooner.
The Traiskirchen centre has been in the news recently due to the fact that it is completely overcrowded. It is only supposed to hold 480 asylum seekers but more than three times that number are accommodated there at present.
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