DR Congo Ebola cases top 4,000 as more health zones affected
Health Ministry reports 4,053 cases, including 1,850 deaths, since outbreak was declared in mid-May
Confirmed Ebola cases in the Democratic Republic of Congo topped 4,000 Friday as affected health zones expanded, according to health authorities.
The latest Ebola outbreak in Congo has become the world's second-largest Ebola outbreak by recorded infections.
Congo has reported 4,053 cases, including 1,850 deaths since the outbreak was declared in mid-May, the latest Health Ministry situation report showed.
The outbreak caused by the Bundibugyo virus has hit 53 health zones across the provinces of Ituri, North Kivu, South Kivu, Haut-Uele and Tshopo.
Ituri, the epicenter of the outbreak, accounts for 86.9% of confirmed cases.
Health authorities said investigations are ongoing to determine whether changes in the virus could be contributing to the growing outbreak.
The director-general of the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), Jean Kaseya, told a virtual news briefing Thursday that the reported figure and deaths could be underreported.
Kaseya called for more community-led response, stronger contact follow-up and easing of access to testing and care.
“After many Ebola outbreaks, we cannot assume we know everything. In the DRC, we must listen to communities, act on what they tell us and build the trust needed to stop transmission,” he said.
Medical charity Doctors Without Borders (MSF) said earlier this week that the response is expanding but is still not reaching communities quickly enough to break transmission chains.
Even more concerning, according to Philippa Boulle, the deputy medical director of MSF, is the fact that the outbreak shows no sign of slowing down.
“New suspected cases are being reported almost daily in new locations, outside already identified transmission chains. To prevent further loss of life, the response must outpace the current rate of transmission,” he said in a statement.
