Five people have beaten Ebola and left hospital in DR Congo, offering rare hope amid an outbreak that’s killed nearly 250.
The group included four nurses who were discharged Sunday from a hospital in Bunia, Ituri province, the center of the current outbreak. A lab worker was the first survivor released last week.
Nurse Etienne Ezo said isolation was the hardest part: “We were really demoralised because we knew that at some point… we were going to die. That was it… if you have never been isolated, you will not know that it’s not easy.”
WHO chief Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus met the nurses and called them “living stories that this outbreak can be stopped.” He praised their commitment to return to work and urged communities to back health staff.
DR Congo’s Institute of Public Health credited early detection, medical care, contact tracing, and community engagement for the recoveries. Director Dr Mwamba Kazadi said the discharges show that quick action makes a difference.
The outbreak is the 17th in DR Congo’s history and is caused by the Bundibugyo strain, which has no approved vaccine yet. There are now over 1,000 suspected cases and at least 246 deaths in DR Congo. Uganda has 9 confirmed cases and 1 death.
Officials stress the same message: seek care early, practice hand hygiene, and share accurate info. They also face pushback over burial rules that prevent families from handling bodies, which clashes with local tradition. Tedros said communities are “at the heart of the solution.”
Life goes on in Bunia for now. Schools and markets are open as people continue daily routines.
