Congo Ebola outbreak passes 4,000 deaths among 8,300 cases

Congo's Ebola outbreak has killed 4,018 people among 8,300 cases recorded since it was declared in eastern Congo on 15 May, the Health Ministry said on Thursday. The figures, released as the death toll passed 4,000, make this the deadliest Ebola epidemic in Congo's history and the fastest-growing Ebola outbreak in history, according to health authorities.statnews.com+1

The outbreak is caused by the Bundibugyo virus, a species of Ebola for which there is currently no approved vaccine or specific treatment, according to the Congolese health ministry. It has spread across 63 health zones in seven provinces, with Ituri remaining the epicentre. The crude case-fatality rate stands at about 48%, and more than 2,200 patients have recovered.

What the death toll shows

The World Health Organization has classified the risk inside Congo as very high and the risk to neighbouring countries as high, particularly as infections have appeared in areas near international borders. The outbreak is on track to exceed the deadliest on record, West Africa's regional outbreak between 2014 and 2016, which killed 11,000 people, WHO has said.wtnh.com

Médecins Sans Frontières said the outbreak has particularly worsened in North Kivu province, which accounts for 40% of new confirmed cases since the end of August. New cases are down 32% in Ituri province but climbing in Tshopo and North Kivu, the latter of which has a case-fatality rate of 59.3%, well above the national average of 48.4%.

Where the outbreak is spreading

There are signs of a downturn in cases. More than 21 days have passed since a new case in 18 health zones, and the 278 infections confirmed near the end of September represent the lowest weekly case count since mid-June. Weekly deaths are now at 192, down from a peak of 364 in mid-August.

Why case counts may be falling

Contact follow-up has reached 78.7% but still represents only 23% of the expected contact volume, which Mankoula described as "a major concern." The outbreak has spread across 63 health zones in seven provinces: Ituri, North Kivu, South Kivu, Haut-Uele, Bas-Uele, Tshopo and Sud Ubangi. An Ebola transit centre at Kigonze, a displacement camp near Bunia in Ituri province housing about 19,000 people, was burned down as security forces searched for weapons. About 1,000 people identified as Ebola contacts were living at the camp, and only about one-fifth had been traced after residents fled, two health officials said. Julien Harneis, the U.N. senior Ebola coordinator, said losing a centre means losing capacity and investment.

How violence disrupted contact tracing

Violence has compounded the crisis. A senior member of Congo's ruling party was beaten to death in Nord-Kivu province after encouraging preventive measures against Ebola on a radio show. Health workers gathered in Bunia to demand unpaid wages, with some not paid for August and September. At least 50 health workers have died of Ebola since the outbreak was declared in May.

As of late last week, 6,300 healthcare workers have received the Ervebo Ebola vaccine as part of a clinical trial, and 1,066 others have also received doses. The vaccine has proven efficacy against the more-common Zaire Ebola virus, and its effectiveness is being estimated against the Bundibugyo strain causing this outbreak. Mobile laboratories have cut test results from 72 hours to six hours.

An MSF staff member tested positive for Ebola on 29 September and was medically evacuated to the Netherlands, arriving on a special medical flight and transferred to a high-level isolation unit at the Leiden University Medical Center. The response continues through cooperation between Congo's Health Ministry, WHO, Africa CDC and international partners, with teams working on surveillance, laboratory testing, treatment and cross-border coordination.