Ebola spreads in eastern DRC as Kenya records its first imported death

Health officials in the Democratic Republic of the Congo announced on October 8 that the Ebola outbreak has moved into Alimbongo, a health zone in North Kivu province. The World Health Organization (WHO) confirmed four laboratory‑verified cases there, two of which were already fatal.

That makes the disease, caused by the Bundibugyo virus, present in 64 health zones across seven provinces. Ituri remains the province with the highest cumulative toll, but North Kivu is now accounting for an ever‑larger slice of the new infections.

According to the latest WHO figures, 8,728 people have been confirmed infected in the DRC, and 4,205 have died – a crude case‑fatality ratio of about 48 percent. A little over 2,200 survivors have been discharged, but the numbers only hint at the strain on the country’s already stretched health system.

Across the border in Kenya, a different tragedy unfolded. On October 6, the Kenyan Ministry of Health confirmed the country’s first imported case of Bundibugyo virus disease. The patient – a Kenyan national who had been living in the DRC – fell ill there, bounced between several clinics, and eventually travelled by road to Kampala, Uganda, before catching a flight to Nairobi on October 3.

Upon arrival, the man was isolated and tested positive. Despite receiving supportive care, he died on October 5. Kenyan authorities have identified 28 close contacts – family members, health‑care workers and others – and are tracing anyone who may have been on the same flight.

In the meantime, a suspected case in Wajir County was ruled out after laboratory tests came back negative, easing fears of a second imported infection. Still, the incident has sparked a flurry of public‑health actions in both Kenya and Uganda, ranging from intensified screening at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport to community‑level awareness campaigns.

Back in the DRC, the response is feeling the pressure of limited treatment capacity and ongoing insecurity. Daniel Makasi Levergénois, founder of Watoto Radio, told reporters that rumours and misinformation are sowing distrust, especially in Beni and Butembo. Some residents simply refuse to cooperate with response teams, fearing stigmatisation or even violence.

Doctors Without Borders (MSF) warned that nearly a third of confirmed patients are still being cared for in facilities that are not specialised for Ebola. “Dedicated treatment centres are running out of beds,” explained Stephanie Hoffmann, the coordinator of MSF’s Ebola unit in Butembo. “When we have to refer patients elsewhere, the risk of onward transmission rises sharply.”

Community leader Alberto Lusenge from Beni echoed those concerns, saying the failure to halt the earlier wave in Ituri, followed by attacks on health workers, has deepened public scepticism. He cautioned that without genuine community engagement, North Kivu could become the next epicentre.

The WHO reported that, as of October 4, contact‑tracing teams had followed up on about 80 percent of the 29,535 identified contacts – just shy of the 85 percent target. Gaps in follow‑up can let chains of transmission slip through unnoticed, a point the Africa CDC stressed in its call for a community‑centred response.

Unlike the 2018‑2020 outbreak, which involved a different Ebola species and saw the rollout of experimental vaccines, there is still no approved vaccine or specific antiviral for the Bundibugyo strain. Early detection, rigorous infection‑prevention measures and supportive care remain the only tools on the table.

As the virus creeps into new health zones and treatment centres groan under the load, the twin challenges facing authorities are clear: stop the spread and rebuild public trust, before the outbreak spirals further out of control.