Jack Bolam was placed in an induced coma on the intensive care unit but did not respond to treatment
Kristy Dawson Multi-Media Journalist
17:51, 26 Mar 2026
Joanne Bolam with her son Jack(Image: Chronicle Live )
A teenager died from meningitis after having no symptoms other than feeling cold. Jack Bolam, from Kingston Park, Newcastle, complained of being chilly before he went to start a shift at a retail store.
The 19-year-old had to leave the shop early as he was feeling sick and dizzy. When he returned home, he vomited and began to have seizures.
Jack was rushed by ambulance to the Royal Victoria Infirmary (RVI) in Newcastle where he was placed in an induced coma on the intensive care unit (ICU). Less than 48 hours later, his devastated family were told there was no activity in his brain.
L-R Jack Bolam, Libby Bolam and Ellie Bolam. (Image: Chronicle Live)
They had to face the heart-wrenching task of turning his life support machine off. Jack’s mam Joanne Bolam, 49, told Chronicle Live: “My whole world was totally destroyed.
“We’re a really tight-knit family and we did everything together. We didn’t have time to process what was going on. It was less than 48 hours.
“There was no warning, no rash and no symptoms other than him feeling cold. He had, what I thought was, a bit of a chill – what you would give someone paracetamol for.”
Jack Bolam with his mam Joanne, dad Stephen and his two sisters Ellie (left) and Libby (right)(Image: Chronicle Live)
Jack was son to Joanne and Stephen Bolam, 51, and brother to Ellie Bolam, 24, and Libby Bolam, 17. He worked as a store assistant at Home Bargains in Kingston Park and a Food Team Leader at St James’ Park.
Joanne said: “He was the best. He gave the best cuddles and he used to go to rugby events with his dad. He played for Novocastrians at Sutherland Park in Benton.
“He loved rugby from being seven but he was the kid that didn’t want to hurt anybody. He was a gentle giant.
“He had a million friends. He was the person who helped anybody. He would give you his last.
“I had cancer – a melanoma in my arm – and he used to look after me. He was just amazing, he would do anything for you.
“His sisters would run around after him. They were really close.”
Jack Bolam when he was younger (Image: Chronicle Live)
Jack began saying he was cold before he started a shift at Home Bargains on Thursday, January 30 last year. Around 20 minutes later, he rang Ellie and asked her to pick him up as he wasn’t well.
Joanne said: “When she went to pick him up he was holding on to a drain pipe, trying to hold himself up. He said he felt dizzy and a bit sickly but that was it.
“His dad made him a cup of tea. He asked for a cup of tea with sugar and he never has sugar in so I thought that was a bit weird. He said: ‘Mam I’m so cold, I’m shivering’.
“I said ‘At least if you’re finished early you can have your tea early’. He said ‘Aye I’m pleased’. That was the last thing he said.
“At eight o’clock all my lights fused. He had vomited into his socket and we heard the girls shout ‘Get up, your being sick’. We went upstairs to see what was wrong with him and he started fitting.
“By 9 o’clock he was being blue lighted to the RVI. He was fitting in the ambulance on the way there.”
L-R Libby, Ellie, Joanne, Stephen and Jack(Image: Chronicle Live)
Joanne, who travelled in the ambulance with Jack, said he was taken into resus and she was asked to wait in the relative’s room. She said she initially told her husband she would call him when they were finished.
The mother-of-three said: “The relative’s room is never a good room to go straight into. They came to me at 10 o’clock and said ‘You need to phone your husband now’.
“Then at 11 o’clock they took him up to ICU and put him into an induced coma. They thought it was meningitis but the bloods had to go to a different lab to get the results back.
“The consultant came to us and he was really upset because his kids were the same age. He said ‘We’re doing everything we can’.
“He said that his best chance would be if he was in an induced coma. It would give a chance for the swelling to go down.
“It was the worst night ever. Everything just came tumbling down that night.”
Jack with his sisters Ellie (left) and Libby (right)(Image: Chronicle Live)
Joanne said the girls went to stay with their grandmother while she remained at the hospital with Stephen, who works as a delivery driver. She said: “The Friday was just a blur.
“We were just willing him to wake up, flinch or open his eyes. His grandma and grandad kept coming in and they were willing him to wake up. The next day two of his friends came in to visit him.”
After less than 48 hours, Jack’s family were told that he was not responding to treatment. Joanne said: “We were in the relative’s room and the nurse came through and said they were going to do the final tests.
“We said ‘What do you mean?’ She said: ‘He’s not making any improvement and there’s no activity in his brain’. We had to watch them perform the final tests with no reaction and the worse outcome ever.”
Jack Bolam with his dad Stephen(Image: Chronicle Live)
Joanne and Stephen gave Jack’s family and friends the opportunity to visit and say goodbye before they turned off his life support machine. She said it took 10 minutes for him to pass away.
A post-mortem was carried out which confirmed that Jack had died as a result of bacterial meningitis. The family has been supported by the charity Meningitis Now.
Joanne said: “It’s absolutely horrific and I think unless you live through it you don’t get the concept of it. Jack could have had a booster vaccine between the age of 14 and 15 but that’s not widely known.”
Jack Bolam as a child (Image: Chronicle Live)
There has been a recent outbreak of meningitis in Kent and it has led to the death of two students. Joanne is urging others to be vigilant when it comes to the disease.
Joanne added: “It’s scary to see what is happening at the moment. I want to say to them ‘Stay where you are and protect yourself’. I just wish people would be a bit more vigilant with it.”
Jack’s family are holding a fundraising event at Sutherland Park in Benton on Saturday for Meningitis Now. They have already raised around £3,500 for the charity.
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