DR Congo Ebola outbreak kills more than 1,700 as WHO accelerates trials

What the report says

The Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has now killed more than 1,700 people, according to figures reported by Al Jazeera from Congolese health authorities and the World Health Organization. The epidemic was declared on May 15 and has been driven by the rare Bundibugyo strain of the virus, which does not yet have approved vaccines or treatments. Officials said 1,707 deaths had been recorded among 3,802 cases.

The outbreak is concentrated in eastern Ituri province, which the report says accounts for nearly 90 percent of cases, though infections have also been confirmed in five other provinces, including Kisangani. More than 17,000 contacts are being monitored, and WHO data indicate that about 80 percent are being followed up each day. The agency also said more than 100 health workers have been infected.

WHO officials said research efforts are moving unusually quickly, with trials of experimental treatments, preventive medicines and vaccines advancing faster than in earlier outbreaks. Vasee Moorthy, who leads the WHO’s R&D Blueprint programme, said the rapid start reflects years of preparation, while stressing that only clinical trials can show whether the products work.

The response has been complicated by insecurity, delays in tracing contacts, attacks on health facilities, access problems and mistrust of authorities. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus was due to visit Kinshasa and then Bunia, near the center of the outbreak, as officials continued to warn that the peak had not yet been reached.