Written by: Ayman Ragab
The Democratic Republic of Congo has recorded a record daily increase in Ebola infections, as the outbreak of the virus affecting the country appears to be accelerating.
The Ministry of Public Health confirmed on Sunday that 72 new cases had been diagnosed in the past 24 hours, bringing the total number of infected people to 782.
The registration of 32 more deaths also raised the total to 181.
Record rise in Ebola cases in Congo
These rising numbers come amid regional conflict, patients fleeing, and limited contact tracing, undermining containment efforts, and sounding alarm bells last week as the virus spread to new areas in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Officials said the Bundibugyo virus strain has a mortality rate of 22.8 percent so far, with 40 patients having recovered.
“We remain committed to supporting affected countries until transmission is stopped… and we call on partners and donors to urgently mobilize resources to strengthen the response and save lives,” said Jean Kassia, Director-General of the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, on Sunday.
This outbreak stems from a rare Bundibugyo strain, for which there is no approved vaccine or treatment, unlike the Zaire virus responsible for the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo in 16 previous cases.
Doctors Without Borders warning
Health ministry officials said contact tracing coverage has dropped to 56.5 percent, a sharp decline from the target of 95 percent.
Doctors Without Borders, also known as MSF, warned that “no one knows the true extent” of the outbreak due to serious gaps in surveillance and testing.
Ituri province in eastern Sudan remains the epicenter of the outbreak, accounting for approximately 951 TP3T of all confirmed cases. The virus has since spread to North and South Kivu provinces and crossed the border into Uganda.
