Ebola infections in DR Congo surpass 7,000

Kinshasa, Sept. 12 (SANA) The number of confirmed Ebola virus infections in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has risen to 7,022 cases, while the death toll has reached 3,398, according to government data covering seven provinces.

Reuters reported that the current outbreak has become the second-largest Ebola outbreak on record, after the 2014–2016 West Africa outbreak, which infected more than 28,600 people and killed over 11,000 in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone.

Health authorities announced the first confirmed Ebola case in the northwestern South Ubangi province, away from the main outbreak epicenter, saying a 23-year-old man died on Tuesday and tested positive for the Bundibugyo strain of the virus.

Authorities said the man had left South Kivu province in eastern DR Congo on July 10, spent a period outside the country, and later returned to Congo before arriving in South Ubangi, which borders the Republic of Congo and the Central African Republic.

The World Health Organization has recently warned that shortages of trained personnel, operational partners and funding are hampering efforts to contain Ebola, particularly as the outbreak expands geographically in DR Congo and surrounding areas.

kA/MZN