Congo has banned funeral wakes and large gatherings as a rapidly spreading Ebola outbreak grows, with the WHO upgrading its risk assessment to “very high” and warning the true scale of infections is far larger than confirmed figures suggest.
Authorities in northeastern Congo have banned funeral wakes and gatherings of more than 50 people as officials scramble to contain a rapidly spreading Ebola outbreak, while the World Health Organization has upgraded its risk assessment for the country to “very high.”
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus confirmed 82 cases and seven deaths, but warned the outbreak is believed to be “much larger.” There are now 750 suspected cases and 177 suspected deaths, complicated by the fact that there is no available vaccine for the Bundibugyo virus strain involved.
Congo Foreign Minister Thérèse Kayikwamba Wagner described the situation as urgent. “We are trying to catch up,” she told the AP. “It is a race against the clock.”
The outbreak has also spread into rebel-held areas of North and South Kivu provinces, where the Rwanda-backed M23 group controls key cities. Kayikwamba Wagner warned that M23 is “thoroughly ill equipped” to fight the disease, and said both sides are not communicating on the outbreak.
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