Ebola outbreak in DR Congo passes 5,000 deaths as Nigeria tests two suspected cases
- DR Congo has recorded 5,026 Ebola deaths and 10,351 confirmed cases since May, its worst outbreak on record.
- Ituri province in the conflict-hit north-east remains the epicentre, and eight of 26 provinces are affected.
- Nigeria's disease control centre says two suspected cases are isolated and undergoing testing.
More than 5,000 people have now died in the Democratic Republic of Congo's Ebola outbreak, according to figures released on Friday by the country's Presidential Taskforce on Ebola.
The taskforce put the toll at 5,026 deaths from 10,351 confirmed cases since the outbreak began in May. It reported 77 new confirmed cases and 34 more deaths in its latest update. The case fatality rate stands at 48.6 per cent.
The outbreak has already become the deadliest in DR Congo's history, surpassing the 2,299 deaths recorded between 2018 and 2020. The United Nations says it is the country's 17th outbreak and the second largest ever recorded, behind the West African epidemic of 2014 to 2016 that killed more than 11,325 people.
Why it is proving hard to stop
Ituri province in the north-east, a conflict zone, remains the centre of the epidemic. It accounts for 71 per cent of all confirmed cases and 36.4 per cent of newly reported infections, according to the taskforce. The virus has reached 67 of the country's 178 health zones, spread across eight of its 26 provinces.
Response teams have also faced hostility. A nurse was killed and another health worker seriously injured this week while responding to an Ebola alert, after local youths accused them of contaminating water sources, according to the UN-backed Radio Okapi. Last month a politician was beaten to death after promoting measures to curb the spread, and the Red Cross said its volunteers were hurt and an ambulance set on fire in 11 violent incidents during the first 100 days.
Health authorities say 1,101 patients are in treatment and isolation centres, while 2,788 people have recovered.
The Bundibugyo strain behind this outbreak has no licensed vaccine or specific treatment. The Ervebo vaccine, used against the Zaire strain in earlier outbreaks, has been deployed to protect frontline health workers. The World Health Organization's Africa office has called for stronger control measures, better access to affected areas and more community outreach, and the WHO has repeatedly appealed for extra funding.
What this means for Nigeria
Nigeria's disease control centre said on Saturday that two suspected cases had been identified, isolated and were being tested. Earlier in October, one woman was confirmed to have the disease in the country and was flown to Switzerland for further treatment.
Kenya has recorded nine confirmed cases and two deaths. Uganda reported two deaths and 20 cases early on, but no new cases since August, though travel restrictions remain for people crossing from DR Congo.
Ebola spreads through direct contact with the bodily fluids of an infected person, such as blood or vomit. Symptoms appear suddenly and can progress to vomiting, diarrhoea and organ failure. The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control says the risk to people in Europe is very low.
