Congo Ebola Outbreak on Track to Surpass 2014 Record, WHO Warns

The Ebola epidemic in the Democratic Republic of Congo is spreading at a record pace and may surpass the catastrophic 2014-2016 West African outbreak that killed 11,000 people, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has warned.

Scale of the crisis

More than 2,000 people have died and over 4,300 cases have been registered since the outbreak was officially declared on 15 May. The first infections likely occurred as early as February. The current outbreak is caused by the rare Bundibugyo strain of Ebola, for which no approved vaccine or treatment exists, complicating the response.

The outbreak is centred on Ituri Province in northeastern Congo, a region marked by insecurity and large numbers of internally displaced people. Cases have also spread to North and South Kivu provinces, where security conditions are equally difficult.

Fear spreads to Kinshasa

Authorities are particularly alarmed at the prospect of Ebola reaching Kinshasa, home to approximately 19 million people. Last week a boat was stopped 65 kilometres upstream from the capital at the port of Maluku after a passenger disembarked in Mongala Province with fever and diarrhoea and later died. More than 200 passengers were isolated and tested; all results came back negative.

The Cinquantenaire Hospital in Kinshasa has prepared 20 isolation beds, expandable to 200-250, and more than 120 health workers from multiple facilities have been trained. However, civil society leaders have called for a more robust response, saying 20 beds are insufficient for a city of this size.

WHO: the outbreak has a head start

WHO chief Tedros warned that the contact-tracing rate must rise from the current 80 percent to at least 95 percent of infected persons' contacts to stop transmission chains. He added that many victims are still dying at home without having been registered on Ebola contact lists, with most new infections spread by untreated late-stage patients or at funerals. The WHO estimates the outbreak will not peak for another six months.