DRC EBOLA DEATH TOLL PASSES 4,000, WORST OUTBREAK IN COUNTRY’S HISTORY

Sat 03 October 2026:

Government figures show confirmed cases have reached 8,300 across seven provinces as response efforts falter.

The Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo has killed more than 4,000 people, according to government data, marking the deadliest epidemic the country has recorded.

Figures released on Friday put the death toll at 4,018, with confirmed cases at 8,300 in seven provinces. Authorities are still struggling to contain the spread.

Poor infrastructure, the isolation of the affected areas in eastern DRC, and continued fighting with armed groups near the borders with South Sudan, Uganda, and Rwanda have slowed the ability to reach and treat cases quickly.

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Transit centre burned as soldiers search for weapons

The United Nations said on Friday that soldiers burned an Ebola-affected camp that housed a transit centre for infected patients earlier this week while searching for weapons on the outskirts of Bunia, the capital of Ituri Province and the outbreak’s epicentre.

About 19,000 people fled the camp after the fire.

“The enormous challenge of halting the spread of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) just became even harder after a key transit centre for patients requiring treatment burned down in Ituri province,” the UN said.

Mistrust fuels attacks on officials

Distrust and anger toward health workers and authorities have added to the barriers facing containment.

A senior member of the governing Union for Democracy and Social Progress (UDPS) was beaten to death days ago after appearing on a radio programme meant to raise awareness of the epidemic.

Marie-Celestin Karondwa, a local UDPS official, was attacked last Sunday at his home in Butembo, an Ebola hotspot in eastern North Kivu province. His house was set on fire afterward, and he later died in hospital from his injuries.

WHO warns epidemic “far from over”

The World Health Organization has warned that the epidemic is “far from over” and is on course to exceed the 2014–2016 West Africa outbreak, which killed more than 11,000 people, mainly in Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone.

The current epidemic is caused by the Bundibugyo strain. It became the largest and deadliest on record in the DRC after surpassing the 2018–2020 outbreak.

Several treatments and vaccines are being trialled against Bundibugyo, but none is yet approved.

The outbreak, the DRC’s 17th, has spread rapidly since it was officially declared on May 15.

More than 2,000 patients have recovered so far. The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention said in its latest briefing that confirmed cases are declining, though the drop may reflect insecurity and difficulty securing community cooperation in some hotspots.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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