Ebola outbreak may be spreading faster than first thought, WHO doctor warns
A senior World Health Organization doctor on the ground in DR Congo said the Ebola outbreak may be spreading faster than first assumed. Confirmed cases have climbed to 246, with more than 80 deaths. The outbreak is straining frontline health facilities in the affected region.
A senior World Health Organization doctor leading the Ebola response in the Democratic Republic of Congo warned that the outbreak may be spreading faster than first thought. According to BBC Africa, confirmed cases climbed to 246 in the past week, with more than 80 deaths. Most of the cases have been identified in Kasai province in the country's east.
WHO teams are working on contact tracing, vaccination and setting up treatment centres across the affected area. The lead doctor said the geographic footprint of the outbreak is a particular concern because of new cases in remote rural villages. Access to treatment centres has been complicated by the rainy season.
Congo's health ministry said 6,500 doses of the Ervebo vaccine have been administered in the past three weeks. The WHO has airlifted additional vaccine stockpiles to the area. According to the BBC, neighbouring countries Rwanda and Uganda have increased temperature screening at border crossings. The previous major Ebola outbreak in the region ran from 2018 to 2020 and caused 2,299 deaths.
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