THE heartbroken father of a 17-year-old girl struck down by meningitis today joined college bosses to warn students to get inoculated against the disease.

The alert came after B-TEC student Lucia Ferguson, of Whalley New Road, Blackburn, died in Blackburn Royal Infirmary within hours of showing symptoms of the disease.

Lucia's father Danny said he and his wife Angela were struggling to come to terms with the death of their only daughter as she prepared to begin the second year of a public service diploma at Blackburn College.

Mr Ferguson said Lucia, who wanted to be a policewoman, complained of a headache when he arrived home from work last Tuesday night and died at 3am the next day.

He said he now believed everyone should be vaccinated against meningitis as a matter of course, and bosses at Blackburn College urged students to be inoculated against the disease in the wake of Lucia's death.

Mr Ferguson said: "I cannot understand why a vaccine is not widely available and given to people in much the same way as we are inoculated against polio, rubella and diphtheria.

"I think everyone should be vaccinated because what I saw that night was out of this world. It wasn't real. It fired through her body so fast I still cannot believe it now.

"She was perfectly fine on Bank Holiday Monday and had spent the day working at Burger King. She was perfectly fit and well. When I came home on Tuesday she complained of a touch of headache but she got worse and we took her to hospital later that night. "She was losing consciousness as we arrived and four hours later she was dead."

Mr Ferguson went on to thank staff at Blackburn Royal Infirmary.

"Once they realised what was happening they were really great, they went into action like there was no tomorrow, but it was too late."

Lecturers at the college today paid tribute to Lucia, a former pupil at Blackburn's Our Lady and St John RC High School.

Mr Ferguson said: "Lucia was a typical 17-year-old girl. She liked going out with her friends and was described by people around here as the girl with the smiling eyes."

Her tutor Sarah Sarginson said she was a well-liked girl who had a sensible, mature attitude combined with a conscientious approach to her work.

She went on: " Her enthusiasm touched everyone with whom she came into contact and Lucia frequently put aside her personal needs to meet the physical demands of challenges she encountered."

Deputy Dean of the college's business and management faculty Carol Neild added: "Lucia was a lovely girl. She would have had a very bright future and she will be sadly missed."

A funeral was taking place to day at St Alban's RC Church, Blackburn, before interment at Pleasington Cemetery.

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