Ebola outbreak in Congo kills dozens, may be hitting hundreds more, Africa’s CDC says

Congo Kinshasa — The Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the continent’s top public health agency, confirmed Friday a new Ebola outbreak in Congo’s remote Ituri province, with 246 suspected cases and 65 deaths so far.

The Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in a statement that the deaths and suspected cases occurred mainly in the Munwalu and Rwampara health zones.

“Four deaths have occurred among laboratory-confirmed cases. Suspected cases have also been reported in Bunia, pending confirmation,” the agency said.

According to Reuters, the agency said in a statement that it was convening emergency meetings with Congo, Uganda, South Sudan and other countries to strengthen cross-border surveillance, preparedness and response.

Ebola is highly contagious and can be contracted through body fluids such as vomit, blood or semen. The illness it causes is rare but serious and often fatal.

The latest outbreak comes about five months after Congo’s last Ebola outbreak killed 43 people.

This is the country’s 17th Ebola outbreak since its first outbreak in 1976. The Ebola outbreak in eastern Congo from 2018 to 2020 killed more than 1,000 people.

Ituri is located in a remote area of ​​Congo with a poor road network, more than 620 miles from the country’s capital, Kinshasa.

The new outbreak will bring more worries to the Central African country, which has been fighting multiple armed groups in the east, including the M23 rebel group, which launched rapid attacks last January and has since seized major cities.

Ituri, in particular, has also struggled with violence from the Islamic State-linked ADF militant group, which has killed dozens of people there and elsewhere in the east.

Congo, Africa’s second-largest country by landmass, often faces logistical challenges when dealing with disease outbreaks. During last year’s three-month outbreak, the World Health Organization initially faced major challenges in delivering vaccines due to limited access and scarce funding.