Ebola outbreak kills 15 in Congo’s Kasai

Health authorities in the Democratic Republic of Congo have intensified containment and investigation efforts after a newly declared Ebola outbreak in Kasai province has so far been linked to 15 deaths and 28 confirmed or suspected cases. The fatalities include four healthcare workers; 14 deaths occurred in the village of Boulapé and one in Mweka. The cluster was first detected after a 34-year-old pregnant woman from Boulapé was hospitalized in August with high fever, vomiting and bleeding; she died of organ failure and subsequent laboratory testing identified the Zaire strain of Ebola, prompting the national health ministry to declare the outbreak.

Teams from the World Health Organization, together with the DRC’s Rapid Response Team, have been deployed to Kasai to support case-finding, contact tracing, safe patient care and infection‑prevention measures. WHO delivered mobile laboratory equipment, personal protective gear and medical supplies and is coordinating field epidemiology and risk‑communication work to limit transmission. Local health authorities have closed or monitored affected facilities and are working to protect frontline workers after the loss of four healthcare staff.

The epidemiological situation remains fluid. Authorities expect additional cases as investigators continue surveillance and testing; Ebola spreads through direct contact with infected bodily fluids, and transmission risk is heightened in areas with limited health infrastructure, insufficient supplies, and challenges reaching remote communities. Public health teams are prioritizing rapid isolation of suspected cases, ring vaccination campaigns where possible, safe burial practices to curb postmortem transmission, and community engagement to counter misinformation and encourage prompt reporting of symptoms.

This outbreak is one more in a long series for the DRC, underscoring persistent vulnerability despite prior response experience. Officials emphasize leveraging institutional knowledge from past outbreaks to accelerate containment while scaling up laboratory capacity, treatment centers and protective equipment. International partners have signaled readiness to provide technical, logistical and material support; investigators continue genetic and contact tracing studies to better define transmission chains and guide targeted interventions.