In the DRC, a new Ebola epidemic leaves 15 dead

A new Ebola outbreak has been declared by health authorities in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), with the Congolese health minister reporting 15 deaths since the end of August on Thursday, September 4. This new outbreak is affecting Kasai province in the center of the country, Minister Samuel Roger Kamba Mulamba said at a press conference in the capital, Kinshasa.

The last Ebola outbreak in the DRC, three years ago, left six people dead. The virus, which remains deadly despite recent vaccines and treatments, has killed 15,000 people in Africa over the past 50 years.

In total, and according to a still provisional report, 28 suspected cases have been recorded in Kasai. The first was reported on August 20, concerning a 34-year-old pregnant woman admitted to a hospital. The mortality rate is currently estimated at 53.6%. During epidemic outbreaks in recent years, this rate has fluctuated between 25% and 90%, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). "This is the sixteenth epidemic recorded in our country,” deplored Mr. Kamba.

The deadliest Ebola outbreak in the vast Central African country of more than 100 million people killed nearly 2,300 people, with 3,500 falling ill, between 2018 and 2020. "We are acting with determination to quickly stop the spread of the virus and protect communities," said Dr. Mohamed Janabi, WHO regional director for Africa, quoted in a statement. But according to the WHO, which has sent experts alongside a Congolese response team, "the number of cases is expected to increase."

The DRC has a stockpile of treatments for this viral hemorrhagic fever as well as 2,000 doses of vaccines "prepositioned in Kinshasa" and which must be sent to Kasai, according to the WHO.

Ebola was first identified in 1976 in Zaire, the former name of the DRC. The disease has six different strains, three of which (Bundibugyo, Sudan, and Zaire) have already caused major epidemics. According to health authorities, the Zaire strain of the virus, against which there is a vaccine, is the cause of the new epidemic in the DRC.

"Fortunately, we have a vaccine for this Zaire strain, but to deploy it, we need to ensure the logistics," Mr. Kamba stressed. The DRC, which is four times the size of France, has poor infrastructure, with limited and often poor communication routes.