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Ebola reaches seventh province in Congo
A confirmed case in remote Sud-Ubangi has pushed Congo’s Ebola outbreak into a seventh province.
What happened
A man who tested positive for Ebola died in Gwaka, Sud-Ubangi, after travelling from eastern Congo. Authorities confirmed the case, extending the outbreak to a seventh province. Sud-Ubangi lies in northwestern Congo and borders the Central African Republic and the Republic of Congo.
Numbers
- 7,022 casesRecorded since the outbreak began — Latest reported official total
- 3,398 deathsDeaths among recorded Ebola cases — Latest reported official total
- 837 peopleIn isolation or receiving treatment — At the latest update
Questions
- What Ebola strain is circulating?
- The outbreak involves the rare Bundibugyo virus, a form of Ebola first officially detected in Congo in mid-May, after suspected earlier spread.
- How did the patient travel there?
- The patient travelled from South Kivu through Rwanda and Uganda before returning to Congo and reaching Gwaka, where he died.
- Why are officials tracing contacts?
- Officials fear many contacts because the patient used road and river transport, which could expose people across provincial and national borders.
- How does this outbreak compare historically?
- It is Congo’s most lethal Ebola epidemic; only the West African outbreak was larger, according to reports comparing recorded cases.
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The catch
The reports do not confirm whether Ebola is spreading locally in Sud-Ubangi beyond the first patient.