Health officials warn of new Ebola outbreak in DR Congo’s Ituri province

Health officials have raised the alarm over a new outbreak of the Ebola virus in a remote area of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

The Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), the continent’s leading public health body, said on February 21 that 246 suspected Ebola cases and 65 deaths had been recorded in Ituri province in the country’s northeast.

Concern is high over the potential for the virus to spread, with containment efforts hampered by a precarious security situation in the region bordering Uganda and South Sudan.

The DRC government has struggled to control the eastern part of the country due to the activity of armed groups seeking control of valuable mineral mines.

Preliminary test results detected the Ebola virus in 13 of 20 samples examined. This outbreak comes about five months after the previous Ebola outbreak in the DRC was declared over, which had killed 43 people.

Africa CDC expressed concerns that the new outbreak could spread rapidly due to high population movement, poor security in affected areas, and challenges in containment.

The agency said it is convening an emergency high-level meeting with health authorities from the DRC, Uganda, and South Sudan, along with key partners, including UN agencies and other countries, to strengthen cross-border surveillance, preparedness, and response.

Ituri is a remote area in eastern DRC with poor road infrastructure, more than 1,000 km from the capital Kinshasa.

First identified in 1976 and believed to be transmitted from bats, Ebola is a deadly and contagious disease spread through direct contact with bodily fluids, causing severe bleeding and organ failure.

“Four deaths have been reported among laboratory-confirmed cases. Suspected cases have also been reported in Bunia, pending confirmation,” Africa CDC said, referring to Ituri’s capital.

“The meeting will focus on immediate response priorities, cross-border coordination, surveillance, laboratory support, infection prevention and control, risk communication, safe and dignified burials for those who die from the outbreak, and resource mobilization,” the agency added in a statement.

The DRC has experienced more than a dozen Ebola outbreaks, with the most severe occurring from 2018 to 2020, which killed nearly 2,300 people.

Security risks make disease control efforts extremely difficult. Eastern DRC has long been plagued by groups vying for control of the mineral-rich region. Last week, a rebel attack in Ituri province killed at least 69 people.

After a lightning offensive by the Rwanda-backed M23 rebel group last January, the DRC government has struggled to regain control of key cities amid a fragile ceasefire.