Nearly 500 cases of Ebola have been confirmed in central Africa, raising concerns over the potential scale of the outbreak, the World Health Organization (WHO) reported on Saturday.
The WHO announced 452 confirmed cases, including 82 deaths, in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) three weeks after the epidemic was declared. In neighbouring Uganda, 19 confirmed cases have been recorded, with two deaths reported.
This brings the total to 471 cases and 84 deaths, an increase of 100 cases and 20 deaths from the previous day’s update.
The surge has sparked warnings that the current outbreak, which the WHO has designated a public health emergency of international concern, could rival the 2014–2016 West African Ebola epidemic that claimed over 11,000 lives.
Without decisive public health measures, “this level is possible,” said Jason Asher of the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), in its epidemic forecasting and analysis division.
Ebola, transmitted through close contact and bodily fluids, has killed more than 15,000 people across Africa in the past 50 years.
No approved vaccine or treatment exists for the rare Bundibugyo strain of Ebola responsible for this outbreak.
On Friday, the WHO and the Africa CDC announced a $518 million (€449.52 million) plan to tackle the epidemic over the next six months, focusing on improving surveillance, laboratory testing, and infection prevention measures.
