Kinshasa, July 23 (IANS) The death toll from the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has risen to 1,033, with the number of confirmed cases up to 2,536, the country’s health authorities said on Thursday.
According to the latest situation report, 506 patients have recovered, while 738 others remain in isolation. No new affected health zone was reported, leaving the nationwide total at 47 across five provinces. Of these, 46 remain under active transmission.
The epidemic remains in a phase of sustained transmission, with a high level of virus circulation, the report noted, cautioning that recent fluctuations in reported cases should be interpreted carefully due to reporting delays and the gradual consolidation of data, Xinhua News Agency reported.
Treatment capacity remains under pressure in North Kivu, where 182 patients were in isolation against a capacity of 141 beds.
Speaking at Wednesday’s press conference in Bunia, the capital of the eastern Ituri Province and the epicentre of the outbreak, Adelard Lufongola, operations manager for the national Ebola response coordination, said that case notifications had entered a plateau in certain areas, with a slight downward trend.
“But epidemiologically, it is still too early to say that we have reached the peak of the outbreak,” Lufongola added.
The outbreak, caused by the Bundibugyo virus, was declared on May 15 in Ituri Province in eastern DRC. Population movements, insecurity, artisanal mining activities and cross-border exchanges with Uganda and South Sudan continue to fuel transmission, according to the report.
Stephane Dujarric, spokesperson for the UN secretary-general, said at a daily briefing on Wednesday that according to local civil society organisations, at least 30 people were killed and a dozen others injured in a series of attacks in the province’s Beni territory between July 13 and 19, and the violence has displaced civilians and restricted humanitarian access in affected areas.
At least six humanitarian organisations, including partners supporting the Ebola response, have suspended movements to several localities in Beni territory due to the deteriorating security situation, Dujarric said, quoting the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.
–IANS
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