All children between the ages of 12 months and 9 years living in London will receive the polio vaccine once the virus is detected in the sewers, British health authorities said Wednesday.

The virus, which causes paralysis and in some cases can be life threatening, was discovered in these waters since last February in several neighborhoods of the British capital, where authorities have set up an urgent vaccination programme.

Polio was officially eradicated in the UK in 2003, but authorities have noted an increase in the number of samples found in municipal sewage.

The UK Health Safety Board (UKHSA), in collaboration with the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), found poliovirus in waste samples in the Barnet, Brent, Camden, Enfield, Hackney, Haringey, Islington and Waltham Forest areas.

According to authorities, the level of virus found in the wastewater and its “genetic diversity” indicates “some viral transmission in the districts.”

Doctors will contact parents and caregivers within the next 30 days to offer them this vaccine.

The aim of this program is to reduce the risk of minors to be infected and also to increase the level of immunity so that the virus is more difficult to spread.

UKHSA epidemiologist Vanessa Saliba said today that all children aged one to nine years need the vaccine “now”, either “as a booster” or to keep up with their vaccinations.

He added that the risk of transmission for most of the vaccinated population was “low” but pointed out that it was “important” for parents to ensure that their children are fully vaccinated.

EFE