DR Congo Ebola outbreak kills more than 1,700 as WHO accelerates trials | Ebola News
Ebola Outbreak in Democratic Republic of the Congo Claims Over 1,700 Lives
The death toll from the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has surpassed 1,700, according to government data released Monday. The World Health Organization (WHO) reports that experimental treatments and vaccines are now being tested at an unusually rapid pace.
Declared on May 15, the outbreak, attributed to the rare Bundibugyo strain of the virus, has resulted in 1,707 fatalities among 3,802 confirmed cases. Over 17,000 contacts are currently under monitoring, with an approximate 80% of those being followed up each day, WHO figures indicate.
This epidemic has become the second-largest Ebola outbreak on record and is growing faster than any previous instance. Unlike past outbreaks driven by other strains of the virus, there are no approved vaccines or treatments for the Bundibugyo variant.
Vasee Moorthy, acting head of the WHO’s Research and Development Blueprint program, emphasized the benefits of advanced planning, allowing researchers to initiate trials sooner than in earlier outbreaks. “If you compare this outbreak to previous Ebola outbreaks, we have been able to start trials more quickly,” Moorthy stated. However, he stressed that only clinical trials will confirm the effectiveness of these experimental medicines and vaccines.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus is scheduled to arrive in Kinshasa on Tuesday, prior to a visit to Bunia, which is close to the outbreak’s epicenter. Meanwhile, Jean Kaseya, Director-General of the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, expressed uncertainty about when the outbreak might peak during his recent visit to Bunia.
The outbreak is particularly concentrated in the eastern province of Ituri, which accounts for nearly 90% of reported cases. Infections have also been confirmed in five other provinces, including Kisangani.
The epidemic has already affected over 100 healthcare workers since it began. Health officials attribute the delayed response to challenges such as violence from armed groups, attacks on health facilities, difficulties in accessing affected communities, and widespread mistrust of health authorities. Fund shortages have further hampered the response efforts.
The increasing strain on the health system has incited unrest among frontline workers. Healthcare staff in the heavily impacted town of Mongbwalu threatened to escalate industrial action unless overdue wages are paid within 24 hours. Strikes over unpaid salaries and unsafe working conditions have also occurred in Bunia.
This outbreak has spread unprecedentedly fast; during the 2014-2016 West Africa outbreak, which infected around 28,000 people and resulted in over 11,000 deaths, it took about eight months for the death toll to reach 1,000.
In contrast, neighboring Uganda declared itself Ebola-free in mid-June after the last patient was discharged from care.
