Congo records over 2,000 Ebola cases as death toll rises to 754 amid worsening outbreak

Ebola outbreak. Representational pic

The number of confirmed Ebola infections in the Democratic Republic of Congo has risen to 2,011, with 754 deaths reported, according to government data released overnight. Authorities say the outbreak is the fastest-growing on record, even as response efforts face setbacks due to payment-related strikes by some health workers.

Data from Congo's Ministry of Health showed that 753 patients are currently in isolation or receiving treatment at hospitals, while 366 people have recovered from the disease.

Officials said contact tracing continues to be a major challenge, with only 67 per cent of identified contacts currently being monitored.

The country has been battling the Ebola outbreak caused by the rare Bundibugya virus since May 15. Two months into the outbreak, infections continue to spread more rapidly than health authorities can contain.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), nearly 80 per cent of new cases are linked to unknown transmission chains.

Health officials have not yet identified the outbreak's first patient, while population displacement due to armed conflict and movement linked to mining activities have made it difficult to trace people who may have been exposed to the virus.

WHO Health Emergencies Chief Dr Chikwe Ihekweazu, who recently returned from Bunia in Ituri province- the region most affected by the outbreak-said many of the latest deaths occurred in communities where patients died without reaching healthcare facilities or receiving medical treatment.

Meanwhile, health workers in several parts of Ituri have gone on strike, with some telling The Associated Press that they have not been paid since joining the outbreak response at its onset.

Efforts to contain the outbreak have also been complicated by the absence virus. Unlike the more common Zaire strain, which has an approved vaccine and was responsible for most of Congo's previous 16 Ebola outbreaks, no licensed vaccine currently exists for the Bundibugyo variant.

However, a long-awaited clinical study evaluating two potential Ebola treatments has recently begun in Ituri.