How Congo's Ebola outbreak became the second-most lethal on record
The ongoing Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo has become the second-most lethal in history, with over 2,300 deaths confirmed. Factors such as armed conflict, delayed detection, and overwhelmed health services have contributed to the rapid spread of the virus.
Why it matters
The rapid acceleration of this outbreak highlights critical failures in global health surveillance and the urgent need for improved containment strategies in conflict zones.
The ongoing Ebola outbreak is now the second-most lethal on record and the deadliest in the history of Democratic Republic of Congo. Only the epidemic in West Africa in 2014-16 killed more people.
The grim milestone was reached on Sunday when government data showed that confirmed deaths topped the toll for Congo's 2018-2020 Ebola outbreak, previously the worst the country had seen. Delayed detection, overwhelmed surveillance teams, armed conflict and a lack of vaccines and treatments for the species of the virus involved have allowed Ebola to outrun containment efforts this time.
Health officials say the current outbreak is spreading five times faster than previous outbreaks did in Congo at this stage. There are now 4,945 cases confirmed, including 2,325 deaths, according to the latest data published on Sunday.
The 2018-2020 outbreak in Congo ended with 3,481 cases and 2,299 deaths recorded over two years.
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