Outbreaks
Congo Ebola outbreak passes 10,000 cases and 5,000 deaths
Government data put the toll at 5,026 deaths among 10,351 infected people, making it the second-deadliest Ebola outbreak on record.
The Ebola outbreak in Congo has passed 10,000 confirmed cases and 5,000 deaths, according to the latest government data reported Saturday by Medical Xpress. Congolese Ministry of Health figures showed 5,026 deaths among 10,351 infected people, with 2,788 people recovered. Medical Xpress reported a nearly 50% lethality rate.
The outbreak, caused by the Bundibugyo virus and declared in mid-May, is now the second-deadliest Ebola outbreak in history, after the 2014 to 2016 West Africa outbreak, which killed 11,000 people, the report said. The disease has spread to 67 of Congo’s 178 health zones in eight of 26 provinces.
Health officials say contact tracing and testing remain difficult. The Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said about 80% of new cases are outside monitored contact chains. The World Health Organization’s Patrick Otim said one-third of recorded deaths were people who died outside treatment centers before being tested for Ebola.
