The Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo has become the deadliest in the country’s history. According to the latest government data, 2,325 people have died from the virus, while the number of confirmed cases has risen to 4,945.
This was reported by France 24.
Another 101 cases of the disease were detected in the country over the previous 24 hours. This is already the 17th Ebola outbreak in the history of DR Congo, and by the end of July it had also become the largest in terms of the number of confirmed cases.
The current death toll has surpassed the 2,299 deaths recorded during the 2018–2020 outbreak, which had previously been considered the worst in the country’s history.
The outbreak was officially declared on May 15. In less than three months, the number of deaths exceeded 2,000. By comparison, during the Ebola epidemic in West Africa in 2014–2016, it took almost five months to reach 1,000 deaths.
The current outbreak is caused by the Bundibugyo species of the virus, for which there are no approved vaccines or treatments. According to government data, the proportion of deaths among confirmed cases has risen from about 20% in early June to 46%.
Experts note that this does not indicate that the virus has become more deadly. The reasons cited include problems with epidemiological surveillance, late detection of patients and limited access to medical care.
