DR Congo Ebola toll reaches 4,242 amid fears of regional spread
- Last updated: October 11, 2026 | 11:46
The Democratic Republic of the Congo's Health Ministry announced on Saturday that the Ebola death toll had risen to 4,242 from 8,787 confirmed cases as of 7th October, representing a case fatality rate of 48.3 percent.
Jean Kaseya, Director-General of the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), had earlier warned that the continuing outbreak posed a threat to neighbouring countries.
In August, the United Nations warned of insufficient resources to contain the outbreak, while a study published in Nature Medicine identified a previously unknown strain of the Bundibugyo Ebola virus, believed to have spread to humans from an animal.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) declared in May that the epidemiological situation in DR Congo and Uganda constituted an emergency posing a threat to other countries, amid heightened regional risks.
WAM