Ebola deaths in DR Congo surpass 2,000 in fastest-spreading outbreak on record

Death toll crosses 2,000

Confirmed Ebola deaths in the Democratic Republic of Congo have reached 2,011, with 4,381 confirmed cases across five provinces, according to data from Congo's public health institute released overnight into Tuesday, August 11. A total of 704 patients are currently admitted in isolation units. The figures come nearly three months after the outbreak was declared on May 15. An earlier tally on August 7 had recorded 1,916 deaths among 4,209 confirmed cases.

The first 1,000 deaths took roughly nine weeks to accumulate, while the second 1,000 occurred in about three weeks. Health officials have described the outbreak as the fastest-spreading on record. It is the second-largest Ebola outbreak in history, behind only the 2014-2016 West Africa epidemic, which recorded over 28,000 cases and more than 11,000 deaths. That earlier outbreak took about eight months to reach 1,000 deaths.

Virus circulated months before detection

The World Health Organization said on Monday that genetic sequencing indicates transmission probably began in February, three months before the outbreak was declared. Initial cases were misdiagnosed as malaria or typhoid, and early testing focused only on the more common Ebola strain, delaying identification.

So we are chasing the virus, the virus is ahead of us.

The sequencing was carried out under the leadership of Dr Steve Ahuka, head of the virology department at Congo's National Institute for Biomedical Research, according to Dr Thierno Balde, WHO's incident manager for the Ebola response. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus visited Kinshasa last week to assist health officials. Congolese virologist Jean-Jacques Muyembe said the virus is spreading at a speed never before observed.

Bundibugyo strain complicates response

The outbreak is driven by the rare Bundibugyo virus strain, for which there are no approved vaccines or treatments, unlike the more common Zaire type. Clinical trials for two antiviral therapy approaches began in Ituri in early July. Authorities are also investigating whether the pathogen may have mutated, given the severity of the outbreak.

Around 86 percent of new Ebola cases cannot be traced back to monitored contacts of confirmed cases, according to Kaseya, a health official. The WHO states that approximately 95 percent of contacts need to be traced to bring the outbreak under control.

We believe that there are more and more cases that are not being reported.

Conflict and infrastructure hamper containment

The epicenter of the outbreak is in Ituri province, characterized by insecurity and a large population of internally displaced people living in extremely cramped conditions. Additional cases are concentrated in North and South Kivu provinces, where the security situation is also a serious problem. Rebel groups control parts of North and South Kivu, fighting against the government and allied militias. In Ituri, the ADF rebel group, allied with IS, attacks villages.

Strikes by medical staff protesting unpaid wages since May have further hindered response efforts. Health teams travel remote unpaved roads and have reported shortages of protective gear. Misinformation asserting that Ebola does not exist has also spread in affected communities. The WHO assesses the worldwide risk of spread as low because Ebola is not airborne, and cases identified outside the affected region have been promptly contained without sustained transmission.