The Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) has announced that the number of confirmed cases of Bundibugyo Ebola in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has reached 8,750 amid a mounting death toll.
Addressing an online press briefing on Thursday evening, Wessam Mankoula, an Africa CDC official said confirmed cases in the ongoing Bundibugyo Ebola outbreak have reached 8,750, with more than 4,208 deaths and a case fatality rate of 48.1 percent.
He said some 2,288 patients have recovered from the deadly disease, while 1,066 patients are currently in isolation.
Mankoula lauded Kenya’s preparedness and ongoing response efforts, as the country became the latest country to record a Bundibugyo Ebola case.
Calling for enhanced regional preparedness and solidarity, he highlighted that the East African country’s prior investments in preparedness have enabled it to respond quickly to the imported case and strengthen contact tracing.
“Ebola is crossing another border. However, at the Africa CDC, we are calling for vigilance, not banning,” said Mankoula.
Africa CDC officials stressed that the imported case has triggered concern over the disease’s spread. The patient moved across the DRC, Uganda, and Kenya before testing positive, highlighting how quickly the virus can cross borders and threaten regional health security.
Mankoula said the current crisis, regarded as the fastest-growing and second-largest Ebola outbreak on record, at week 21, has recorded 4.1 times more cases and 3.7 times more deaths than the next-highest comparator, the 2014-2016 West Africa Ebola outbreak.
Beyond the DRC, Uganda, and Kenya, 10 other countries across the continent have been previously designated as high-risk: South Sudan, Rwanda, Zambia, the Central African Republic, Tanzania, Ethiopia, Angola, the Republic of the Congo, Burundi, and Somalia.
The Africa CDC declared the ongoing Bundibugyo Ebola outbreak a public health emergency of continental security on May 18, one day after the World Health Organization declared the situation a public health emergency of international concern.
MG/as/APA