Ebola has killed more than 3,500 people in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in the four months since the outbreak began, spreading at the fastest pace on record. Experts at the United Nations and the World Health Organization said the outbreak has yet to pass its peak.
Seven Provinces and 62 Health Zones Affected
Cumulative confirmed cases reached 7,258 as of the 13th of this month, according to the Congolese Ministry of Communication and Media on the 15th. Of those, 3,510 have died, putting the fatality rate at 48.4%. So far 1,726 people have recovered and 905 remain hospitalized.
The outbreak is widening. What began in the northeastern province of Ituri has recently spread to South Ubangi in the northwest. Seven provinces and 62 health zones have now been designated as affected areas.
Julian Harneis, the U.N. Ebola response coordinator, told a press briefing in Geneva on the same day that containment efforts were showing results but that full control would take several more months. He said large and deadly clusters of infection remained, and that while some areas were making progress, case numbers were still rising in others.
"Too Early to Say the Peak Has Passed"
Olivier Le Polain of the WHO, who attended the same briefing, was asked whether the outbreak had peaked and said it was too early to make that call because conditions varied by area and the situation was multidimensional.
That assessment differs somewhat from the Congolese government's. Health Minister Samuel Roger Kamba said on the 12th of this month that the outbreak peaked in mid-August and that transmission was gradually slowing, according to Reuters. He cited a decline in new daily cases to about 80 from around 120. Kamba added that the country should not let its guard down and must maintain a full-scale response posture.
Neighboring Uganda Contains Its Outbreak
Neighboring Uganda has brought its outbreak under control. The Ugandan government, which declared an Ebola outbreak on May 15 alongside the Congo, declared the outbreak over on July 28 after no further cases were confirmed. The WHO officially confirmed that on the 26th of last month.
The current outbreak in the Congo shows signs of becoming the worst on record. It has already surpassed the country's largest previous outbreak, in 2018-2020, which recorded 3,481 cases and 2,299 deaths. There is growing concern that it is approaching the scale of the 2014-2016 West Africa outbreak, the largest ever recorded, with 28,616 cases and 11,310 deaths.
Korea Runs 2026 Safe Korea Exercise on Ebola Scenario
Meanwhile, South Korea's Ministry of Health and Welfare and the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency jointly conducted the 2026 Safe Korea Exercise on the 15th, based on a scenario in which the Ebola virus enters the country.
The WHO declared the Ebola outbreak originating in the Congo a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC) on May 17. The government ran tabletop and field simulation drills assuming domestic transmission and deaths from such an infectious disease. It was the first Safe Korea Exercise the ministry has held on an infectious disease since the COVID-19 pandemic, with 14 organizations taking part, including the Ministry of the Interior and Safety and the National Medical Center.
Health Minister Jung Eun-kyeong said rapid cooperation among central ministries, local governments and medical institutions is essential for an effective response to an infectious disease crisis, adding that the ministry would put in place a thorough preparedness system to respond preemptively to any such crisis.
