KINSHASA, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO / RankWire.AI / – Ebola cases in the Democratic Republic of the Congo have reached a new high for fatalities in the country’s history, with government data confirming 4,945 confirmed infections and 2,325 deaths as of Aug. 16. Over the past 24 hours, health officials documented 101 new confirmed cases. The death toll has now surpassed the 2,299 fatalities reported during the Ebola outbreak from 2018 to 2020.
These latest statistics intensify concerns that had been raised earlier, as both cases and fatalities continued to rise across eastern DRC. United Nations humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher stated that the virus was claiming one life every 30 minutes. Since the outbreak was officially announced in May, the virus has expanded at an extraordinary rate. By late July, confirmed cases had already exceeded the total number recorded during the 2018 to 2020 outbreak, making this epidemic the largest in the country’s history by case count.
The outbreak was declared on May 15 after laboratory confirmation of Bundibugyo virus disease. This marks the 17th Ebola outbreak in the DRC since the virus was first identified in 1976. The World Health Organization designated the situation as a public health emergency of international concern on May 17. Currently, there is no approved vaccine or specific treatment for Bundibugyo virus disease. Medical teams are relying on early detection, supportive care, isolation, contact tracing, and infection control measures.
Six provinces affected as case numbers accelerate
By Aug. 12, the outbreak had impacted 54 health zones across six provinces: Ituri, North Kivu, South Kivu, Haut-Uélé, Tshopo, and Bas-Uélé. Bas-Uélé became the most recent province affected after authorities confirmed a case in the Buta health zone. The patient had traveled from Haut-Uélé before showing symptoms. Ituri remained the epicenter of the outbreak, accounting for approximately 85% of the confirmed cases reported nationally at that time.
The epidemic has also impacted healthcare workers and added strain to medical services in affected regions. As of Aug. 9, authorities confirmed at least 155 infections among health workers, including 45 fatalities. By Aug. 12, 965 patients in the DRC had recovered. Medical teams tracked more than 17,000 contacts out of roughly 20,700 identified during the latest reporting period. Ongoing insecurity, population displacement, and attacks on health facilities have hampered efforts in surveillance, treatment, and contact tracing.
Expanded health measures amid record-high death toll
National health authorities have increased testing, surveillance, and treatment efforts across affected zones. Response teams are also training healthcare workers and bolstering infection prevention at health centers. Activities include contact tracing, laboratory testing, safe burial procedures, and community outreach. Although researchers are evaluating experimental vaccines and treatments, none have yet been approved for Bundibugyo virus disease. A clinical trial for potential therapies began enrolling confirmed patients in Ituri in July as part of the expanding emergency response.
The outbreak has extended beyond the DRC, with Uganda reporting 20 cases and two deaths, while health authorities maintained heightened monitoring after discharging their last patient in July. France has reported one imported case with no documented secondary transmission. Currently, the DRC’s epidemic ranks second globally in total deaths, only behind the 2014 to 2016 West Africa Ebola outbreak, which resulted in 11,310 deaths and 28,616 cases across Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone.