Health authorities confirmed an Ebola outbreak centered on Ituri Province in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, prompting a regional response to a rare form of the virus. The outbreak later extended across multiple Congolese provinces and into neighboring Uganda, according to information reported by the Associated Press.
The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention said the first cases were reported in late April in Bunia, the capital of Ituri, and in the nearby Mongbwalu health zone, a busy mining area. Officials had not established the source of the outbreak and said transmission might have begun weeks before authorities detected it.
Laboratory findings identified Bundibugyo virus, one of three Ebola virus types known to cause large outbreaks. It differs from the type often called Zaire Ebola virus, which has dominated previous outbreaks in Congo. Health authorities initially tested for the more common type, delaying the early response.
By May 29, the World Health Organization had recorded 134 confirmed cases across Congo and Uganda, including nine in Uganda. Eighteen deaths had occurred among confirmed cases. The WHO declared the outbreak a public health emergency of international concern, a measure intended to mobilize donors and strengthen the response, while saying the situation did not meet its criteria for a pandemic emergency. It advised against international border closures.
No approved vaccine or medicine is available specifically for Bundibugyo virus. A WHO technical advisory group was reviewing vaccine candidates that could be considered for a clinical trial, although experts cautioned that the process would probably require months. The current outbreak was described as the largest known episode involving this virus type. Earlier recorded outbreaks occurred in Uganda’s Bundibugyo district in 2007–2008 and in Isiro, Congo, in 2012.
Ebola can pass from infected wild animals to people and then spread through direct contact with bodily fluids or contaminated materials. Symptoms can include fever, vomiting, diarrhea and muscle pain, with internal or external bleeding in some patients. The illness is uncommon but can be severe and fatal.
Containment efforts faced substantial logistical and security barriers. Ituri lies more than 1,000 kilometers from Kinshasa and has poor roads and limited health facilities. Armed violence, population displacement and attacks on health centers further obstructed medical work. Cases were also reported in North Kivu and South Kivu, where conflict has disrupted access.
International organizations assisting the response included WHO, UNICEF, the International Organization for Migration, Médecins Sans Frontières, the World Food Program and the Red Cross. Medical supplies donated by the European Union reached Ituri on May 28, while the United States announced an additional $80 million in aid that day, raising its commitment to more than $112 million. Médecins Sans Frontières subsequently called for expanded testing, faster deployment of personnel and reliable access for supplies, warning that the response was not keeping pace with transmission.
