More than 100 people have died from Ebola in eastern Congo less than a month after authorities declared an outbreak of the disease, according to officials. The grim milestone comes as health workers intensify efforts to contain the virus, which was discovered weeks after it began spreading.
The outbreak, declared on May 15, is caused by the rare Bundibugyo virus, for which there is no approved vaccine or treatment, unlike the more common Zaire strain responsible for most of Congo's previous 16 outbreaks.
As of Sunday, 550 cases have been confirmed, including 101 deaths and 19 recoveries, according to the latest situation report released late Monday. The outbreak is concentrated in Ituri province, which accounts for more than 90% of cases, with additional cases reported in North Kivu and South Kivu provinces.
The virus has also spread across the border into Uganda, where 19 confirmed cases have been recorded.
The true number of cases in Congo is believed to be higher because the outbreak was confirmed weeks late, and contact tracing coverage, though improved in recent days, remains at only 64%. The rapid increase in confirmed cases is partly due to the scale-up of diagnostic capacities, which has allowed testing of a backlog of previously collected samples, authorities said.
Health measures to limit the spread of Ebola have disrupted daily life in Bunia, the bustling capital of Ituri province. Motorcyclist Justin Abekani said authorities now allow only one passenger per motorcycle, down from the usual two.
Despite these efforts, widespread skepticism and disregard for health protocols persist in some areas.
Front-line health workers, who labor with little pay or rest, have been attacked multiple times by angry residents and have been unable to reach some communities cut off by conflict involving armed rebel groups. Eastern Congo has for years seen attacks by dozens of separate rebel and militant groups, some linked to foreign countries or the extremist Islamic State group.
The fighting is "disrupting surveillance and response activities, and increasing the risk of undetected transmission," the World Health Organization said Monday. Nearly a million people have been displaced by conflict in Ituri, according to the U.N.
humanitarian office, making contact tracing difficult as people flee attacks or move frequently through the vast province with dense forests, poor roads, and remote villages that can take days to reach. Tracing is also challenging among thousands of artisanal miners who regularly move between remote sites in the mineral-rich region.
WHO currently assesses the risk of spread to the rest of Africa and globally as low. "Ebola patients can recover if they get the medical support they need," WHO Director-General Dr.
Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said Monday during a visit to Uganda.
In neighboring Kenya, protests erupted over U.S. plans to build an Ebola quarantine center near a military air base in Nanyuki.
On Tuesday, Kenyan police fired tear gas to disperse protesters. A Kenyan court has suspended construction of the facility and barred the arrival of any foreign patients pending the outcome of a case filed by the Law Society of Kenya and a constitutional watchdog group, citing concerns about Kenya's fragile health system and lack of transparency.
Kenya has not recorded any Ebola cases.