The deathtoll from the Ebola outbreak raging in the Democratic Republic of Congo is said to be growing “exponentially,” with more than 2,500 deaths now recorded.
United Nations’ senior Ebola coordinator Julien Harneis stated on Friday that in the last three months, “more than 2,500 people” had died, “and half of those in the last 20 days.”
Declared on May 15, the DRC’s 17th Ebola outbreak is thought to have already been spreading for several weeks by that point.
It has hit regions in the north and east where the presence of the state is weak, health infrastructure is largely lacking and myriad armed groups have roamed for decades.
The outbreak has spread across six provinces and more than 50 health zones, with Ituri remaining the main epicentre. The World Health Organization says transmission is being driven by population movement along roads, rivers and mining routes, as well as insecurity and displacement. The speed of the outbreak has made it particularly difficult for health authorities to identify and isolate infected people before they transmit the virus.
A major factor responsible for the spread is that the Bundibugyo strain has no vaccine or treatment specifically approved for it. Unlike the Zaire strain responsible for previous major Ebola outbreaks, Bundibugyo has received comparatively little research and pharmaceutical development. The current response therefore depends heavily on early diagnosis, isolation, supportive medical care, contact tracing, safe burials and community cooperation.
