DR Congo Ebola outbreak passes 10,000 cases, 4,887 deaths
Congo's Bundibugyo Ebola outbreak reaches 10,060 confirmed cases and 4,887 deaths, the country's largest and deadliest, with cases recorded in Kenya and Nigeria.
The story in focus
Congo's Ebola outbreak has reached 10,060 confirmed cases and 4,887 deaths, government data released Tuesday showed. It is the country's largest and deadliest outbreak and the second-largest on record, caused by the rare Bundibugyo virus, which has no approved vaccine or treatment.
- Government data put confirmed cases at 10,060 and deaths at 4,887.
- It is Congo's largest and deadliest Ebola outbreak, second only to the 2014-2016 West African epidemic.
- About 80 percent of new cases came from outside monitored transmission chains, against a 95 percent target.
- The Bundibugyo virus has no approved vaccine or treatment; a first vaccine trial was announced Friday.
- Cases reached 66 health zones in eight provinces, up from three at declaration.
Outbreak scale and strain
The outbreak, declared on May 15 and caused by the Bundibugyo virus, is the fastest-growing in Congo's history. Cases have been recorded in 66 health zones across eight provinces, up from three in the first days. The World Health Organization announced Friday that the first clinical trial of a vaccine had been rolled out; no vaccine or treatment is approved for this strain.
Responders reported overwhelmed treatment centres and shortages of supplies and staff in remote and newly affected areas. At least half of those who died were never admitted for treatment, and health workers have faced strikes over unpaid bonuses, including in Nia Nia, Ituri province. On Saturday, a nurse was killed and a colleague seriously injured in Bafwasende, Tshopo province, the WHO said.
Cross-border spread
The virus has reached farther across Africa than any earlier Ebola outbreak. Uganda said citizens returning from Congo must quarantine for 21 days at their own expense; officials reported no active infections after 20 cases and two deaths over the summer.
In Kenya, confirmed cases rose to nine, two of them fatal, after a man who travelled from Congo via Uganda died in Nairobi. Nigeria recorded a case in the wife of a Swiss diplomat who had not visited Congo; Swiss authorities believe she was infected in Uganda. She was evacuated to Switzerland on Monday, and Nigeria increased airport screening.
How many confirmed Ebola cases and deaths has Congo's outbreak recorded?
Government data released Tuesday put confirmed cases at 10,060 and deaths at 4,887, making it Congo's largest and deadliest Ebola outbreak and the second-largest on record.
Sources & further reading
- Ebola cases in DR Congo surpass 10,000 in fastest-growing outbreak ↗Al Jazeera
- Congo's Ebola cases surpass 10,000 as fears grow of wider African spread ↗The Straits Times
- Congo’s Ebola outbreak tops 10,000 cases as authorities race to slow the spread ↗ABC News - Breaking News, Latest News and Videos
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