Ebola case confirmed in rebel-held area of DR Congo
The rebel alliance that controls the region says a case of Ebola has been confirmed in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo’s South Kivu province – hundreds of kilometers from the epicenter of the outbreak.
The case, which occurred in a rural area near the provincial capital Bukavu, signals the spread of an epidemic that experts think circulated undetected in Ituri province, several hundred kilometers to the north, for about two months before being detected last week.
As of Wednesday, the outbreak has been linked to 139 deaths, with 600 suspected cases reported in Ituri and North Kivu provinces, according to the World Health Organization.
Two cases were also confirmed in neighboring Uganda.
Alliance Fleuve Congo, which includes Rwanda-backed M23 rebels who seized eastern Congo last year, said the 28-year-old patient had died and was safely buried.
It was stated that the person was traveling from the northern city of Kisangani, but no details were given about his recent movements.
Two suspected cases, including the fatal case, have been detected in the province, South Kivu health spokesman Claude Bahizire told Reuters early on Thursday.
He said that the other patient was in isolation waiting for test results.
Last week, an Ebola case was also confirmed in Goma, the capital of neighboring North Kivu province, which is under M23 control.
WHO declared the outbreak of the Bundibugyo strain of the virus, for which there is no vaccine, a public health emergency of international concern over the weekend.
Jane Halton, chief executive of the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), said the confirmed cases likely represented the “top of the iceberg”.
CEPI, which funds vaccine development, is evaluating potential candidates for Ebola.
He said it might be possible to achieve CEPI’s goal of having a safe and effective vaccine for major outbreaks within 100 days, but that would be a “huge increase”.
Efforts to contain the epidemic have been complicated by its spread into densely populated urban areas and ongoing armed conflict in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The Zaire strain epidemic that occurred in the region in 2018-2020 was the second deadliest epidemic on record, with approximately 2,300 deaths.
This time, first responders say they are experiencing shortages of basic supplies, and some attribute that to cuts in foreign aid by major donors that they say have weakened local health services and disease surveillance.
The United Kingdom said on Thursday it would allocate up to 20 million pounds ($A38 million) towards the response.
The United States, which gave nearly US$600 million ($840 million) to the 2018-2020 response, has pledged US$23 million so far and said on Tuesday it would help open up to 50 clinics in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda.
Uganda’s health ministry said late Wednesday that it had not been consulted about U.S. plans to set up clinics and stressed there was no known local transmission.
Information Minister Chris Baryomunsi told Reuters the United States “overreacted” by banning most travelers from Uganda, as well as the Democratic Republic of Congo and South Sudan, earlier this week.
“We have been dealing with Ebola cases in other outbreaks for several years,” he said.
“The country has the capacity to control these outbreaks.”
