WHO Declares Congo Ebola Outbreak Global Health Emergency As Death Toll Crosses 80

Last Updated:May 17, 2026, 09:54 IST

The outbreak has been linked to the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola, for which no vaccine or specific treatment currently exists.

The Democratic Republic of the Congo is battling a deadly Ebola outbreak that has killed more than 80 people, with the World Health Organization declaring it an international public health emergency on Sunday.

According to the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, 88 deaths and 336 suspected infections linked to the highly contagious haemorrhagic fever had been recorded by Saturday.

The outbreak has been linked to the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola, for which no vaccine or specific treatment currently exists.

“This strain has a very high lethality rate, which can reach 50 percent," DR Congo Health Minister Samuel-Roger Kamba said.

The WHO said the outbreak qualified as a “public health emergency of international concern", which is the second-highest alert level under international health regulations. However, the agency stopped short of declaring a pandemic emergency.

The virus has already crossed borders, with officials confirming that a Congolese national infected with the Bundibugyo strain died in neighbouring Uganda.

Health authorities confirmed the latest outbreak in Ituri province in northeastern DR Congo, near the borders with Uganda and South Sudan.

According to the Congolese government, the first identified patient was a nurse in Bunia who arrived at a health facility on April 24 showing Ebola-like symptoms including fever, vomiting and haemorrhaging.

Medical charity Doctors Without Borders, also known as MSF, said it was preparing a “large-scale response" as the number of infections continued to rise.

“The number of cases and deaths we are seeing in such a short timeframe, combined with the spread across several health zones and now across the border, is extremely concerning," said Trish Newport, MSF Emergency Programme Manager.

Local residents described worsening conditions in affected areas.“We’ve been seeing people die for the past two weeks," said Isaac Nyakulinda, a local civil society representative.

“There is nowhere to isolate the sick. They are dying at home and their bodies are being handled by their family members," he added.

The WHO warned that the actual number of infections and the geographical spread may be significantly higher than currently detected.

“There are significant uncertainties to the true number of infected persons and geographic spread," the WHO said.

The agency added that the increasing number of suspected cases, high positivity rates and confirmed infections in two countries indicated “a potentially much larger outbreak than what is currently being detected and reported, with significant local and regional risk of spread."

This is the 17th Ebola outbreak recorded in DR Congo. The previous outbreak in the country ended in December after killing at least 34 people. Ebola spreads through bodily fluids and infected blood, with symptoms sometimes appearing up to 21 days after exposure.

(With inputs from AFP)

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