Congo Ebola deaths reported above 5,000 as outbreak continues

More than 5,000 people have died in the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s Ebola outbreak, according to government figures cited on Friday by Nieuws.nl in a report credited to ANP, Reuters and AFP. The reported toll marks another rise in what the World Health Organization calls the country’s largest recorded Ebola outbreak.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention counted 4,992 confirmed deaths and 10,274 confirmed cases in Congo as of 28 October. That earlier death count was eight short of 5,000. Nieuws.nl did not give a cut-off date for the figure it reported on Friday; the Congolese public-health institute has posted a situation report dated 29 October, but its publication page does not display the totals.

Nieuws.nl also cited 10,060 recorded cases. The Associated Press had reported that same figure on 27 October, citing the Congolese health ministry, so it should not be read as a new case count for Friday. Earlier this month, the outbreak had passed 4,000 reported deaths. The WHO counted 9,704 confirmed cases, including 4,687 deaths, as of 20 October and said transmission was continuing across eight provinces.

The outbreak is caused by the Bundibugyo virus. As of 23 October, the WHO said there was no approved vaccine or specific treatment for the disease, although patients could receive supportive care. A vaccine trial began in Bunia that day. Cases in Kenya were linked to an infection imported from Congo; Nigerian authorities were still investigating the source of exposure in an imported case there.