Ebola Outbreak in DRC Claims 2,325 Lives Amidst Rapid Spread
WHO declares public health emergency as confirmed cases reach 4,945, with containment efforts hampered by late identification and community resistance.
Sarah Connor
The Democratic Republic of Congo faces a rapidly escalating Ebola outbreak, with 2,325 deaths and 4,945 confirmed cases.
Children make up a quarter of confirmed cases and almost a third of all deaths; maternal deaths in Ituri province have reportedly doubled.
Ituri province remains unstable due to militias and ongoing conflict, further complicating containment efforts.
the epidemic is killing someone every 30 minutes
Tom Fletcher stated, "the epidemic is killing someone every 30 minutes," as the World Health Organization warned the outbreak is moving at an 'exceptional pace'.
The virus, caused by the rare Bundibugyo species, transmits from wild animals to humans and then spreads through direct contact with bodily fluids of infected people or contaminated materials.
Symptoms can include fever, fatigue, muscle pain, headache, and sore throat, followed by vomiting, diarrhoea, abdominal pain, rash, and impaired kidney and liver functions.
Britain's MHRA has authorized the first human trials of a Bundibugyo vaccine developed by University of Oxford researchers.
The WHO sponsors a clinical trial in the DRC for two existing antiviral therapies; trials for vaccines and treatments are ongoing in Ituri province.
Over 1,000 people have reportedly recovered, while 730 remain in hospitals or isolation.
Most new cases and deaths are being reported outside of people being monitored.
Challenges include strikes by unpaid health workers, threats by rebel groups, community anger, difficult terrain, and misinformation, even as a substantial scaling up of response activities gets underway.
United Nations humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher announced the allocation of an additional $30.5 million and the deployment of 20 more staff.