Two kids contract meningococcal in WA

Two children have contracted meningococcal in Western Australia in a week.

The children, one in the metropolitan area and one in the Kimberley, were diagnosed this week but both cases were unrelated, the Department of Health said on Saturday.

Meningococcal is a bacterial infection that can cause death within hours if not treated in time.

The two cases reported this week brings the number of cases diagnosed in WA this year to nine.

Seventeen were diagnosed in 2015.