The Sokoto State Government has confirmed that 33 children have died in a fresh outbreak of cerebrospinal meningitis, as health officials race to contain the disease across multiple local government areas.

Commissioner for Health, Faruk Abubakar, said authorities have recorded 256 suspected cases in at least eight local councils since the outbreak resurfaced about a month ago. Sabon Birni tops the list with 63 cases, followed by Wamakko with 60, Shagari with 51, Tambuwal with 33 and Dange Shuni with 26. Kebbe has reported 16 cases, while Bodinga, Gada and Kware have recorded fewer than five cases each.

Abubakar disclosed that many of the deaths occurred in remote communities before patients could reach health facilities. He blamed late presentation and persistent beliefs that the illness is spiritual, warning that such misconceptions are costing lives.

Cerebrospinal meningitis is a severe infection that inflames the membranes surrounding the brain and spinal cord. It spreads more easily in hot, dry conditions and in overcrowded, poorly ventilated settlements. Northern Nigeria, including Sokoto, lies within Africa’s “meningitis belt,” a region prone to recurrent epidemics.

Typical symptoms include sudden high fever, severe headache, neck stiffness, vomiting, sensitivity to light, confusion and convulsions. Without prompt treatment, experts say, patients can die within hours or suffer permanent disabilities such as hearing loss, brain damage or paralysis.

To stem the outbreak, the state government, in partnership with Médecins Sans Frontières, has set up isolation centres at the General Hospitals in Dogo Daji and Tambuwal, with separate wards for male and female patients. Although only about 20 laboratory samples have so far tested positive, officials report that patients who arrive early are responding well to treatment, and no new deaths have been recorded in recent days at the centres.

At the Dogo Daji facility, a nurse who requested anonymity said 22 patients are currently on admission. He noted that while recovered patients are discharged daily, new cases continue to arrive, and rising admissions may force the opening of an additional ward to separate women and children.

The nurse commended the level of support at the centre, saying doctors, nurses, health promoters and hygiene staff are fully deployed. Treatment is free, he added, with patients receiving medication, meals and transport support after their cases are confirmed.

Despite these efforts, the centre recently recorded two deaths, including a boy under five and another patient who died while being referred to Usmanu Danfodiyo University Teaching Hospital.

At the Specialists Hospital, Sokoto, Chief Medical Director Dr Attahiru Sokoto confirmed that meningitis patients from Badon Barade in Wamakko Local Government Area were treated at the hospital’s isolation unit and have all been discharged.

Health authorities are urging residents to seek immediate medical care at the first sign of symptoms and to disregard claims that meningitis is a spiritual affliction, insisting it is a medical emergency that can be treated effectively when detected early.