NATIONAL
8-year-old boy contracts H flu and dies within 20 hours. ‘Nothing they could do’

By Mike Stunson
MAY 29, 2025 8:33 AN


Liam Dahlberg, 8, died after he contracted H flu, which developed into a meningitis infection, family said. GoFundMe screengrab

An 8-year-old boy contracted a bacterial infection from a classmate and died within 20 hours, his Indiana mom said. … Ashlee Dahlberg, of Lowell, is now imploring parents to vaccinate their children following the April 28 death of her son, Liam Dahlberg.

She told WTHR her immunocompromised son complained about a headache when he returned home from school. When he was taken to a hospital the next morning, an MRI uncovered “bacteria that was covering his brain and spinal cord,” the mother said.

“At that point in time, there was nothing they could do,” Dahlberg told WTHR. … Liam had contracted H flu, also known as Haemophilus influenzae or Hib. The disease developed into a meningitis infection, a loved one said in a GoFundMe.

Liam, described in the GoFundMe as a “bright and smart young boy... full of life and potential,” was declared brain dead within 20 hours following the onset of his symptoms, his mother said in a Facebook post.

{snip}

HEALTH
Grieving Indiana mother warns parents after 8-year-old son dies from deadly bacteria

Ashlee Dahlberg said it all started when her 8-year-old son, Liam, came home from school with a headache in April.

Author: Logan Gay
Published: 12:38 AM EDT May 29, 2025
Updated: 12:38 AM EDT May 29, 2025

LOWELL, Ind. — An Indiana mother is using her grief to warn other parents about a bacterial infection that killed her son within hours. … "This is not your typical everyday flu," said Ashlee Dahlberg of Haemophilus influenzae, also known as "H. flu" or "Hib."

Doctors say it's a bacterium – not a virus – and it's extremely deadly. Most children are vaccinated against it when they're babies. … "We later found out that he contracted invasive Hib, which is the more aggressive form of Hib. Anybody that contracts it usually dies within 24 hours," Dahlberg said.

Dahlberg said it all started when her 8-year-old son, Liam, came home from school with a headache in April. By the next morning, he was being rushed to the hospital. Her normally lively child became delirious at some moments.

"They took him to an MRI. That's when they discovered the amount of bacteria that was covering his brain and spinal cord. Basically at that point in time, there was nothing they could do," Dahlberg said.

{snip}