Congo’s Ebola outbreak has surpassed 9,000 confirmed cases, with more than 4,300 deaths, government figures show
BUNIA, Congo– Confirmed cases in Congo’s Ebola outbreak have surpassed 9,000, with more than 4,300 deaths, as health authorities struggle to contain the outbreak spreading across seven provinces, according to government figures released Tuesday.
The Health Ministry reported 9,066 confirmed cases and 4,381 deaths, a death toll approaching half the number of confirmed cases.
The rising death toll has alarmed health workers and authorities, with many of the recorded deaths occurring outside treatment centers. The latest report recorded 88 new cases and warned that “community transmission remains a concern.”
The outbreak has created new hotspots as it spreads to more communities, with 65 health zones across seven provinces now affected.
Authorities say confirmed cases make up only a third of all cases, and many of them go undetected. The outbreak involves the rare Bundibugyo virus, for which there is no approved vaccine or treatment.
Efforts to contain the virus have been hampered by several factors, including fighting between government forces and rebel groups, which has created one of the world’s most serious humanitarian crises, widespread disregard for health precautions, intense population movements, and shortages of medical supplies and treatment centers.
The outbreak has surpassed Congo’s 16 previous outbreaks in scale and is on track to surpass West Africa’s regional outbreak of 2014 to 2016, which killed 11,000 people.
“I feel that the government is overwhelmed by events. But there is nothing else to say. The government must fully assume its responsibilities to ensure the effectiveness of the response against Ebola,” said Samuel Buju, a resident of Bunia, the provincial capital of Ituri, one of the hotspots of the epidemic.
Last week, Kenya became the second country after Uganda to report a case of Ebola imported from Congo, heightening concerns about the virus spreading across borders.
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AP’s Africa coverage at: https://apnews.com/hub/africa
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