Arcata High Junior, Everett Halikas loses battle with Bacterial Meningitis

ARCATA, Ca. (KIEM) – A local family and the Arcata High School community are grieving this week. Earlier, we told you about Everett Halikas, a junior at the high school, that was diagnosed with bacterial meningitis. We have learned that Halikas has lost that battle.

A GoFundMe page set up for the young man’s family posted an update Monday night stating, “It is with great sadness that at 5:30 this afternoon our beloved Everett passed away peacefully and in a way Everett would have wanted.”         

In an interview with Dr. Teresa Frankovich, Humboldt County’s Public Health officer Monday afternoon, she said quote, “We are all thinking about this family, and they have requested that they be given privacy at this time.”

Humboldt County Public Health is recommending that contacts close to the student seek preventive antibiotic treatments. DHHS is reaching out to people who have been in close contact.

The risk of infection to others is low, but parents are still advised to look for signs of the disease which include fever, headache, stiff neck, and/or rash.