DRC Ebola outbreak toll climbs to 580 dead, 1,708 cases

The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has raised the death toll from the ongoing Ebola outbreak to 580, with 1,708 confirmed cases reported as of July 6. The epidemic, declared on May 15 in the eastern Ituri province, has tragically expanded its reach.

According to the DRC's Ministry of Communication and Media, the current fatality rate stands at 34%. In addition to the confirmed cases and deaths, 680 patients are currently hospitalized or in isolation, while 280 individuals have recovered. The contact tracing rate has reached 75.2%.

The outbreak has spread beyond Ituri, affecting the neighboring eastern provinces of North Kivu and South Kivu. Furthermore, the virus has crossed borders, with Uganda reporting 20 confirmed infections, including 15 cases considered imported from the DRC, resulting in two deaths. France also confirmed its first case in a doctor returning from a mission in the DRC.

This outbreak involves the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola, which has a fatality rate between 30% and 50% and lacks an authorized vaccine or specific treatment, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). The WHO assesses the risk of further spread in sub-Saharan Africa as high, while the global risk is considered low. The current epidemic ranks as the third-worst in recorded history, surpassed only by the West Africa outbreak (2014-2016) and a previous DRC outbreak (2018-2020).