By Gloria Ogbonna
Health officials are sounding the alarm as the ongoing Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Uganda continues to worsen, claiming more than 200 lives and spreading at an increasingly rapid pace.
According to the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), the number of confirmed Ebola cases has risen dramatically in recent days, increasing by 38 percent in just one week. The agency reported a total of 894 confirmed infections, with the overwhelming majority concentrated in eastern Congo, where health workers are struggling to contain the virus amid conflict, population displacement, and severe shortages of resources.
The outbreak involves the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola and has already become one of the most serious Ebola emergencies in recent years. While it has not yet reached the catastrophic levels seen during the major Ebola outbreaks that struck the DRC in 2014 and 2018, it has already surpassed the scale of Uganda’s first recorded Ebola outbreak in 2000.
Public health experts fear the situation may be significantly worse than official figures suggest. Epidemiologists believe many infections have likely gone undetected, and the true extent of the outbreak remains uncertain because officials still do not know exactly when transmission began. As a result, many infected individuals may have unknowingly spread the virus before health authorities became aware of the outbreak.
One of the biggest challenges facing response teams is contact tracing—the process of identifying and monitoring individuals who have come into contact with infected patients. Africa CDC epidemiologist Wessam Mankoula warned that authorities remain far behind where they need to be in tracking potential exposures.
Based on current infection numbers, experts estimate there should be between 17,000 and 35,000 contacts linked to the 894 confirmed cases. However, only about 4,000 contacts have been identified and monitored so far, representing roughly 15 percent of the expected total.
“We are still far from controlling the situation of this outbreak,” Mankoula said, emphasizing the urgent need for additional resources and personnel.
Health officials attribute the shortfall largely to a lack of funding and staffing. Although international donors have pledged support for the response effort, Africa CDC says only about 10 percent of those promised funds have actually been released. The agency estimates that at least 540 trained personnel are needed to effectively combat the outbreak, but only 84 staff members are currently available.
Earlier this week, Africa CDC Director-General Jean Kaseya highlighted the immense scale of the challenge. Given the densely populated communities affected by the outbreak and the close social interactions common in the region, he estimated that every confirmed Ebola patient may have approximately 40 contacts who need to be traced and monitored.
Kaseya also stressed the importance of safely handling the bodies of Ebola victims. Because the virus remains highly contagious after death, rapid and secure burials are essential to preventing additional infections. Some of the additional staff requested by Africa CDC would be tasked specifically with managing and safely burying those who have died from the disease.
Meanwhile, humanitarian organizations fear the outbreak has not yet reached its most dangerous stage. Bruno Michon, operations manager for the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), warned that health officials may still be weeks or months away from seeing the peak of infections.
“We are afraid that this could last one year to end this disease,” Michon said, underscoring concerns that the outbreak could become a prolonged public health emergency.
Beyond medical challenges, aid workers are also encountering resistance from local communities. Mistrust of health authorities and misinformation about Ebola continue to hamper response efforts, particularly in remote areas of eastern Congo.
Michon revealed that Red Cross teams have experienced verbal abuse, threats, and even physical attacks while conducting outreach programs and overseeing safe burial procedures. Such hostility has complicated efforts to educate communities about prevention measures and encourage infected individuals to seek treatment quickly.
Doctors Without Borders, also known as MSF, reported another troubling trend. Emergency medical coordinator Kate White said treatment centers are becoming overwhelmed with new patients who were never previously identified as contacts of known Ebola cases. This suggests that large chains of transmission are occurring outside the surveillance system, making containment even more difficult.
Each newly discovered patient often leads investigators to dozens of additional contacts, significantly increasing the workload for already stretched response teams and creating new opportunities for the virus to spread.
Compounding the crisis is the humanitarian catastrophe unfolding across eastern Congo. Years of violence by jihadist groups, armed militias, and insurgent organizations have displaced millions of people from their homes, creating ideal conditions for disease transmission.
According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), more than two million internally displaced persons are currently living in the outbreak region. Approximately 320,000 of them reside in overcrowded camps where sanitation is poor and access to healthcare is limited. The remaining displaced individuals frequently move between communities, increasing the risk of carrying the virus into previously unaffected areas.
The UN refugee agency recently highlighted an alarming example of how insecurity is fueling the outbreak. On June 7, armed group activity triggered panic among residents of Mbau, a town located near the Ebola hotspot of Beni. The violence caused approximately 2,250 people to flee to the town of Oicha in North Kivu province.
Health experts warn that such sudden population movements can accelerate the spread of Ebola while making contact tracing nearly impossible. When thousands of people relocate unexpectedly, authorities struggle to identify where individuals have traveled, whom they have encountered, and whether they may have been exposed to the virus.
UNHCR officials say the outbreak is creating additional hardships for vulnerable populations already suffering from conflict, poverty, and displacement.
“For refugees and internally displaced people already facing trauma, insecurity, and inadequate humanitarian assistance, the outbreak is fueling fear and misinformation, eroding trust in response teams and delaying access to life-saving care,” the agency said.
As infections continue to rise and health systems remain under intense strain, international organizations are urging governments and donors to release additional funding and support immediately. Without stronger intervention, experts fear the outbreak could continue expanding across eastern Congo, threaten neighboring countries, and become one of the region’s most challenging public health emergencies in years.
Source Breitbart
Original article
Comments