The Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DR Congo) risks becoming the deadliest in Africa’s recent history unless authorities bring it under control quickly, the head of the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) has warned.
Speaking during a virtual meeting of African heads of state on Tuesday, Africa CDC Director-General Jean Kaseya said tens of thousands of people who may have been exposed to the virus have yet to be identified and monitored.
“If we don’t stop the outbreak very soon, it will be worse than what we had in West Africa and eastern DR Congo,” he stressed.
The warning refers to the 2014-2016 Ebola epidemic in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone, which killed more than 11,000 people, as well as the second-largest Ebola epidemic in history, which took place in 2018 in the DR Congo.
According to the DR Congo Health Ministry, 29 new confirmed Ebola cases and four deaths were reported on June 15. All newly detected infections were recorded in Ituri province, while North Kivu and South Kivu reported no new cases.
The country’s cumulative toll has reached 837 confirmed cases and 196 deaths, with a case fatality rate of 23.4%. Health officials said 49 patients have recovered, while 376 remain in isolation.
The outbreak has also spread beyond Congo’s borders. In its latest update published on June 14, Africa CDC reported 19 confirmed Ebola cases in neighboring Uganda linked to the current outbreak. Two deaths have been recorded among confirmed patients, while four people have recovered.
The response to the outbreak has also been complicated by an ongoing insecurity in DR Congo; the M23 rebel group continues to control parts of the region, fueling clashes and displacement.
Reuters said, citing local authorities, that armed assailants stormed a health center near the city of Butembo in North Kivu province on Monday night and abducted a woman and her six-year-old daughter, who had tested positive for Ebola. Health officials warned that the pair’s disappearance could increase the risk of further transmission if they are not under medical supervision.