Ebola Outbreak in DR Congo Worsens: 438 Dead, Virus Reaches Strategic City of Kisangani

The Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has worsened significantly, with total fatalities reaching 438 and confirmed cases rising to 1,406 since the epidemic was declared on 15 May. The situation has entered a critical phase after health authorities confirmed the first case in Kisangani, a strategic trading hub with a population of 1.5 million. According to the latest report from the National Institute of Public Health (INSP), the case fatality rate stands at approximately 31 per cent. The north-eastern province of Ituri remains the epicentre, accounting for more than 83 per cent of all deaths, while the virus has now spread to neighbouring provinces including North Kivu and South Kivu. The first case in Kisangani involved a 24-year-old pregnant woman who died. Investigations revealed that her body was transported covertly by motorcycle from the Nia Nia health zone in Ituri Province. This illegal movement of remains has triggered alarm, as the bodies of Ebola victims remain highly infectious and often serve as a primary vector for transmission. President Felix Tshisekedi stressed that the outbreak poses a serious cross-regional threat. “Epidemics know no borders,” he stated during a press conference in Kinshasa alongside visiting South African President Cyril Ramaphosa. President Ramaphosa urged the international community not to isolate the DRC through travel restrictions, emphasising that global support is more crucial than isolation to control the spread of the deadly disease. In addition to the Kisangani case, authorities in Haut-Uele Province reported one death and one new case. The patient had fled from the Nia Nia health zone, prompting large-scale contact tracing efforts by medical teams on the ground. The Congolese government currently classifies the Kisangani and Haut-Uele cases as imported from Ituri, but heightened surveillance remains in place given Kisangani’s role as a key transport hub in the country’s north-east. This marks the 17th Ebola outbreak in the DRC. The virus, which spreads through direct contact with bodily fluids, has claimed more than 15,000 lives across Africa over the past five decades. The country’s largest epidemic occurred between 2018 and 2020, resulting in nearly 2,300 deaths.