Ebola outbreak in Congo, death toll rises to 967

Thierno Balde, the WHO’s incident manager for the Ituri province, told a news conference in Geneva that “long-term instability, the risk of conflict and the presence of displaced and highly mobile populations have created conditions conducive for the spread of the virus.” According to him, health workers have intensified their efforts to raise awareness about the acceptance of treatment and surveillance at the community level.

He said that the current priority is to limit the affected areas and prevent further spread.

According to the DR

Congo government, there were 2,423 confirmed cases of Ebola as of Sunday. Of them, 967 have died and 469 have recovered. Currently, 734 patients are under treatment or observation.

The infection has also affected 121 frontline health workers.

Of those, 36 have died, according to health officials. Ebola has also spread to 47 health facilities in five provinces, with the infection also confirmed in the Adja health region of Ituri province. Of them, 46 areas are still active cases.

The epicentre of the outbreak, which was announced on May 15, is in the province of Ituri, where more than 90 per cent of all cases and 80 per cent of deaths have been reported. According to the WHO, population movement, security challenges, informal mining activities and cross-border movement with Uganda and South Sudan have added to the challenge of controlling the infection. DR

Congo and Uganda have also conducted a joint technical assessment of a mobile laboratory operated in the border area of Kaseni to prevent the spread of the infection across the border. CCTV Plus