Congo Ebola Outbreak Tops 5,000 Cases, Outpacing Response
The outbreak has killed 2,378 people and is spreading three times faster than the deadliest Ebola epidemic on record, the WHO says.
Congo's Ebola outbreak has reached 5,021 cases, including 2,378 deaths as of Sunday, according to data from the country's Ministry of Health released Wednesday, as responders warn the virus is spreading faster than efforts to contain it in one of the country's most remote regions.
The outbreak has infected and killed people at a greater speed than any other Ebola outbreak in history, the World Health Organization says, and is expected to surpass the 2014-2016 West Africa outbreak — the deadliest on record, with more than 11,000 deaths. From its first detected case, the current outbreak has spread about three times faster than that one.
"We must be frank: the epidemic is far from being under control," WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said Tuesday at a meeting convened by the agency, warning that "the risk of further national and international spread remains high."
A nurse in Ituri's capital, Bunia, Thérèse Anyiya, told The Associated Press she is exhausted by the work demands and poor conditions, and that some health workers have gone on strike over unpaid wages. "If the managers don't take things seriously, we too will end up withdrawing," she said.
A major obstacle is the lack of approved vaccines or treatments for the rare Bundibugyo virus strain responsible for the outbreak. Most new cases are turning up outside groups already under surveillance, meaning teams are struggling to keep pace.
Ituri province, the hardest hit, has also become a flashpoint for violence against health workers. On Monday, a mob in the territory of Aru attacked a health team after a suspected case was reported, setting fire to an ambulance and damaging two other vehicles, according to Michael Wani of the Union of Cultural Associations for the Development of Ituri.
Experts believe the virus began spreading from the mining town of Mongbwalu as early as February, months before authorities declared the outbreak on May 15. The overall case fatality rate stands at 47.4%, but reaches 70% in North Kivu province, where limited access to care means many patients are not getting treatment in time.
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