More than 7,000 Ebola cases have been recorded in the Democratic Republic of Congo, making the latest outbreak the country’s worst-ever epidemic of the deadly disease.
According to figures released by Congolese health authorities, 7,022 cases have been recorded since the outbreak began, with 3,398 deaths and 1,671 recoveries.
The outbreak was officially detected in mid-May after reportedly spreading undetected for several weeks. It began in Ituri Province in the northeast before spreading to remote areas in the east and north, where armed groups have operated for decades and healthcare infrastructure remains limited.
Earlier this week, Ebola was confirmed in South-Ubangi Province, the seventh province affected by the outbreak. South-Ubangi borders the Central African Republic and the Republic of Congo.
Most of the cases have been recorded in Ituri, where Ebola has also been detected in schools following the return of pupils from the summer holiday.
A mother in Bunia, the provincial capital of Ituri, expressed concern over the spread of the virus among schoolchildren.
“We are very worried because we don’t know which child comes from which family or what the health status of the members of that family is,” Angele Magani told AFP.
She said parents remained worried despite assurances from school authorities about measures put in place to prevent transmission.
A school official in Bunia, Roger Mungimbo, said hand-washing with soap had been made compulsory, while class sizes had been limited to a maximum of 30 pupils.
He added that pupils had also been advised to avoid physical contact and regularly wash their hands.
Ebola is transmitted through contact with infected bodily fluids and can cause severe bleeding, organ failure and death. The disease has killed more than 15,000 people in Africa over the past five decades.
The current outbreak is caused by the Bundibugyo strain of the virus, for which there is currently no approved vaccine or treatment, although several vaccines and treatments are being tested.
