Ebola global emergency as WHO chief admits ‘I’m in panic mode’ | World | News
The World Health Organization has declared an Ebola outbreak centered in the Democratic Republic of Congo a public health emergency of international concern, as a top health official warned that it was in “panic mode” with no approved vaccine available and 88 suspected deaths recorded.
Figures from the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) put the total number of suspected cases at 336; the vast majority are concentrated in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and two have been confirmed in the capital of Uganda.
Africa CDC director general Dr. Jean Kaseya told Sky News that the death rate for this particular strain of the virus was higher than usual and that the lack of an approved vaccine left him deeply alarmed.
“I’m in panic mode right now because people are dying. I don’t have my medication. [a] “The vaccine will support countries,” he said.
Where is the Ebola outbreak?
According to the World Health Organization, the epicenter of the crisis is in Ituri, a remote province of the Democratic Republic of Congo, and cases have been recorded in at least three health zones, including Bunia, Rwampara and Mongbwalu, Sky News reported.
Kampala saw two separate diagnoses emerge in quick succession on Friday and Saturday; each in patients who had traveled from the Democratic Republic of Congo, but the World Health Organization said the two cases were not linked to each other. One of these patients died and his body was later returned to the Democratic Republic of Congo. Uganda’s health ministry described both cases as “imported” from across the border.
Congolese Health Minister Samuel-Roger Kamba said the suspected source of the current outbreak was a nurse who died in April at a hospital in Bunia, the capital of Ituri province. “People in the community said it was witchcraft or something like that… We noticed that the first person fell ill in late April and died on April 24 in Bunia, and the body was sent back to the Mongwalu health zone. What caused the Ebola epidemic to escalate was the sending of this body back to the Mongwalu health zone, which is a highly populated mining area,” he said through a translator.
How serious is the Ebola outbreak?
While the WHO refrained from classifying the situation as a pandemic emergency comparable to Covid-19, it warned against travel restrictions and urged countries to keep their borders open. The Africa CDC has raised alarm about the potential for the disease to spread beyond Congo’s borders, citing the close geographic relationship between the affected areas and Uganda and South Sudan. With “active community transmission” already underway, medical teams were working quickly to expand screening programs and trace people who had come into contact with confirmed cases.
Complicating containment efforts, ongoing attacks by Islamic State-backed militants have hampered surveillance and rapid response efforts in Ituri, the Africa CDC said.
In a stern warning to the international community, Dr Kaseya said: “Western countries do not understand that when Africa is affected they are also at risk because people are flying every day.” He added that candidate vaccines and medicines were being developed, saying: “We hope that we can have something in the next coming weeks.”
What did world leaders say about the Ebola epidemic?
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa praised the governments of the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda for their responses, saying he praised their “swift leadership and transparency” in declaring the outbreaks. He added: “Early detection, rapid reporting and decisive action remain critical to containing outbreaks before they escalate into a wider regional crisis.”
How many Ebola outbreaks have there been in the Democratic Republic of Congo?
Saturday’s declaration marks the 17th time the DRC has faced an Ebola outbreak since the virus was first documented within its borders nearly five decades ago. One of the most devastating disasters to hit Eastern Congo between 2018 and 2020 claimed the lives of more than 2,000 people.
