The Democratic Republic of Congo’s fast-growing Ebola outbreak has reached a sixth province after a fatal case in Bas-Uele. World Health Organization officials warn the crisis is on track to surpass the deadliest epidemic in history as health workers strike over unpaid wages and response efforts battle community resistance.
The Ebola epidemic in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has expanded into Bas-Uele province following the death of a motorcycle taxi driver who traveled from Haut-Uele, according to Jean-Jacques Muyembe, the head of Congo’s National Institute for Biomedical Research. The patient developed haemorrhagic symptoms consistent with Ebola and tested positive after his death in Buta, the capital of Bas-Uele.
While the new province will not officially be added to the list of affected provinces until there is a case involving local transmission, the man’s movements before his death have alarmed health authorities. Muyembe reported that the driver visited multiple healthcare facilities while sick, and fellow motorcycle taxi drivers attempted to retrieve his body, requiring local police intervention to manage the risk of wider exposure.
Escalating Toll and Unprecedented Speed in Ituri Province
The ongoing health emergency represents Congo’s 17th Ebola outbreak. Government figures released show total infections have reached 4,566 cases with 2,128 deaths, making it the second-largest outbreak on record behind the 2014–2016 West Africa epidemic. Approximately 90% of all cases and 80% of deaths are concentrated in Ituri province, where the virus was first detected.
The pace of transmission has outstripped previous health crises. World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus stated that the outbreak is on track to surpass the deadliest on record, which started over a decade ago and killed more than 11,000 people. Death tolls in the current DRC emergency have accumulated nearly three times faster than they did at the equivalent point during the 2014-16 outbreak.
Jean Kaseya, director general of the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, warned that the crisis will last more than a year if it is not stopped.
Treatment Strikes and Fractured Contact Tracing Compound the Crisis
Response efforts face severe operational hurdles on the ground, including strikes by frontline personnel. Health workers at the Nizi Treatment Center in Ituri province went on strike and temporarily closed the facility after reporting they had not received salaries for three months. Kaseya called on the Congolese government to disburse the available funds immediately to support protesting medical staff.
Meanwhile, contact tracing has broken down significantly.
“We are chasing the virus; the virus is ahead of us.”
Dr Mohamed Yakub Janabi, the WHO regional director for Africa, via The Guardian
Community mistrust, misinformation denying the existence of Ebola, armed rebel violence, and restrictions on traditional burials involving touching the bodies of the deceased continue to expose populations to high infection risks. In Ituri’s Nyakunde health zone, partner agencies including Africa CDC and Mercy Corps were forced to temporarily relocate following a July 15 attack on a local hospital sparked by a patient’s death.
Clinical Trials Launch for the Rare Bundibugyo Strain
The current outbreak is driven by the rare Bundibugyo ebolavirus strain, which is genetically different from previous outbreaks in 2007 and 2012. There are no approved vaccines or treatments for this strain.
Researchers and public health agencies are working to close that therapeutic gap. Clinical trials evaluating two experimental treatments and two vaccines developed specifically for the Bundibugyo strain began in Ituri. The WHO is also studying whether existing Ebola vaccines could protect people against the virus, while Uganda officially declared itself Ebola-free on Tuesday following a 74-day outbreak.
Продолжение темы
