DR Congo Ebola Cases Pass 10,000 in the Fastest-Growing Outbreak on Record
Confirmed Ebola cases in DR Congo have passed 10,000, with 4,887 deaths reported as of October 25, as the Bundibugyo outbreak spreads across eight provinces and into neighbouring countries.
Highlights
- Government data released on Tuesday put confirmed cases in DR Congo at 10,060 and deaths at 4,887, as of October 25 Al Jazeera.
- The outbreak is the fastest-growing and deadliest in DR Congo’s history, and the wider outbreak is the second-largest on record Al Jazeera.
- The cause is the Bundibugyo virus, a rare Ebola species for which no vaccine or treatment has been approved AFP via Modern Ghana.
- Cases have been recorded in eight provinces and 66 health zones, with eastern Ituri province accounting for more than 70% of confirmed cases Xinhua via People’s Daily.
A milestone reached in just over five months
Confirmed Ebola cases in the Democratic Republic of the Congo have surpassed 10,000, after government data released on Tuesday put confirmed cases at 10,060 and deaths at 4,887 Al Jazeera. The figures are as of October 25, with the fatality rate at 48.6 percent Xinhua via People’s Daily.
It is the fastest-growing Ebola outbreak in the country’s history and nearly half of those confirmed to have the virus have died, according to data from the DRC’s Ministry of Public Health Al Jazeera. That also makes it the deadliest outbreak of the disease in the country’s history Al Jazeera.
With cases also mounting outside the DRC, the wider outbreak is the second-largest and second-deadliest on record, trailing only the 2014-2016 West African epidemic, which saw 28,600 infected and more than 11,000 dead Al Jazeera. The headline figure here is the official DRC total of 10,060, not any wider multi-country tally.
The virus behind the outbreak
The outbreak, declared on May 15, is caused by the Bundibugyo virus, a rare Ebola strain for which no vaccine or treatment has been approved Al Jazeera. Among the many challenges facing the response is the lack of any approved vaccines or treatments for the rare Bundibugyo species of Ebola behind the epidemic AFP via Modern Ghana.
On Friday, the World Health Organization (WHO) announced that the first clinical trial for a vaccine had been rolled out Al Jazeera. A health worker administered a dose of the Tumaini vaccine in Ituri on October 23, 2026, according to the photo caption in the Al Jazeera report Al Jazeera. Xinhua stated that on Friday the first participant received a dose in Bunia, the capital of Ituri, marking the launch of a pivotal Phase 2/3 clinical trial known as Tumaini, or “hope” in Swahili Xinhua via People’s Daily. The first candidate being evaluated is Ervebo, a vaccine already approved against a different Ebola virus species Xinhua via People’s Daily.
Where transmission is concentrated
Cases have been recorded in 66 health zones across eight provinces, up from just three in the first days Al Jazeera. According to DRC health authorities, the outbreak has spread to eight of the country’s 26 provinces and 66 health zones, with the eastern province of Ituri remaining the epicentre, accounting for more than 70 percent of confirmed cases Xinhua via People’s Daily.
A report released last Wednesday by the WHO Regional Office for Africa found that infections rebounded in early October after falling in late September, suggesting “renewed intensification of transmission” Xinhua via People’s Daily.
Five months into the outbreak, responders say some treatment centres are overwhelmed, while remote and newly affected areas are short of medical supplies and health workers Al Jazeera. At least half of those who have died were never admitted for treatment Al Jazeera.
Why so many cases sit outside known chains
About 80 percent of new cases are coming from outside the chains of transmission that health authorities are monitoring Al Jazeera. The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) has said at least 95 percent of cases must come from the known contacts of infected people for the outbreak to be considered under control Al Jazeera.
Only about 12 percent of confirmed cases have been identified among previously known contacts, indicating that some chains of transmission remain undetected, according to Wessam Mankoula, an official with the Africa CDC, speaking at an online press briefing last Thursday Xinhua via People’s Daily. The two percentages measure different things, but both point the same way: much transmission is occurring outside contacts authorities already know about.
The outbreak has unfolded against a protracted armed conflict in eastern DRC, where years of violence and mass displacement have strained the healthcare system Xinhua via People’s Daily. The WHO warned that escalating insecurity, continued population displacement and restricted humanitarian access are disrupting disease surveillance and response operations, raising the risk of infections going undetected Xinhua via People’s Daily.
Cases beyond DR Congo’s borders
Cases have likewise been detected in Kenya, Nigeria and Uganda, with the WHO warning that Africa faces a “complex” task to contain an outbreak spanning the east, west and centre of the continent AFP via Modern Ghana.
After recording a total of 20 cases and two deaths, Uganda was declared Ebola-free by the WHO in late August AFP via Modern Ghana. Xinhua differs on timing, stating Uganda declared its outbreak over in July and reaffirmed on Sunday that it remained Ebola-free Xinhua via People’s Daily. The totals agree; the month does not, so this article notes the disagreement.
Kenya had not reported a single case until October 6 and has likewise suffered two deaths AFP via Modern Ghana. Kenya has since recorded nine confirmed cases, including two deaths, with 98 contacts under monitoring as of Monday Xinhua via People’s Daily.
The only case so far confirmed in Nigeria, a Swiss woman who contracted the virus following a trip to Uganda, was evacuated back to Switzerland on Monday AFP via Modern Ghana. The WHO said the patient tested positive for Bundibugyo on October 20 AFP via Modern Ghana. The reports differ slightly on Nigeria’s contact count, so no single figure is stated here.
What officials have said
In the official reaction reported this week, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus responded after assailants killed a nurse and seriously injured a colleague as the two responded to a suspected Ebola case in Bafwasende, Tshopo province, the WHO said Al Jazeera. Tedros said on X: “Everyone working to protect communities from this deadly disease must be able to work in dignity and safety” Al Jazeera.
On the vaccine trial, Chikwe Ihekweazu, executive director of WHO’s Health Emergencies Program, said: “If successful, this would be the first time we have clear evidence of vaccine efficacy against Bundibugyo virus” Xinhua via People’s Daily. Ihekweazu described the prospect as “a major advance” that could transform responses to current and future outbreaks Xinhua via People’s Daily. Africa CDC Director-General Jean Kaseya on Sunday welcomed Uganda’s continued vigilance and cooperation with Nigeria in investigating the source of its imported case, warning that the risk of further cross-border spread persists Xinhua via People’s Daily.
The bottom line: DR Congo’s official count — 10,060 confirmed cases and 4,887 deaths as of October 25, released on Tuesday Xinhua via People’s Daily — marks the country’s fastest-growing and deadliest Ebola outbreak on record Al Jazeera, driven by a Bundibugyo virus with no approved vaccine or treatment AFP via Modern Ghana, concentrated in Ituri Xinhua via People’s Daily, and now reported across borders as a first vaccine trial gets under way Al Jazeera.
