A 17-year-old student at Massapequa High School died of bacterial meningitis yesterday. Michael Gruber had gone to bed with flu-like symptoms on Wednesday and on Thursday morning his parents were unable to wake him up. He died at New Island Hospital.
Gruber was also in the St. Rose of Lima Catholic Youth basketball league and worked part-time at a King Kullen in Massapequa Park. The Nassau County Health Department is notifying people who had close contact (especially between January 13 and January 23) with him to seek treatment. Nassau County acting Health Commissioner told Newsday that it was "unusual" that Gruber died so quickly but added "the disease is rapidly progressive."
Here's an FAQ on bacterial meningitis from the NYC Department of Health. Symptoms, which usually appear 5 days within infection (sometimes within 2-10 days), include fever, headache, vomiting, stiff neck and a rash. Gruber's aunt urged people to be aware of the symptoms, "He went to bed fine and he woke up dying."
Update: WNBC reports a woman who is a school counselor at a Queen public school has also died of bacterial meningitis; health officials do not believe it is related to Gruber's death.
