Ebola death toll in DR Congo tops 3,000 as outbreak spreads

Kinshasa, Sept. 2 (SANA) More than 3,000 people have died in an Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo, making it the country’s deadliest on record, health authorities said Wednesday.

The outbreak has killed 3,007 people among 6,186 reported cases, while 1,409 patients have recovered, Agence France-Presse reported, citing the Congolese National Institute of Public Health.

The toll has surpassed the country’s 2018-2020 outbreak, which killed about 2,300 people among roughly 3,500 cases.

Health authorities are struggling with limited resources as infections rise, while treatments and vaccines are being tested against the Bundibugyo strain responsible for the current outbreak. Approved Ebola vaccines target the Zaire strain and are not approved for Bundibugyo.

The current outbreak, caused by the rare Bundibugyo strain, is the second-largest Ebola outbreak on record and the fastest-spreading, according to the authorities. There are currently no approved vaccines or treatments specifically for the strain.

Ebola spreads through direct contact with the bodily fluids of infected people and can cause severe hemorrhagic fever.

R.A/ABD