DR Congo Ebola Outbreak Growing Exponentially, UN Warns

GENEVA —

An Ebola outbreak tearing through the Democratic Republic of Congo is growing "exponentially," the United Nations' senior Ebola coordinator, Julien Harneis, told reporters on Friday, according to France 24, BBC News and Euronews. More than 2,500 people have died since the outbreak was declared on May 15, and half of those deaths happened in just the last 20 days, Harneis said.

Harneis, who briefed reporters while speaking from Bunia, at the center of the outbreak in the country's east, said the virus is now spreading across an area bigger than France. "It is growing faster and wider than the Ebola response," he said, according to Agence France-Presse.

Worst On Record

The outbreak is already the deadliest in Congo's history and the second-deadliest Ebola outbreak ever recorded, behind only the 2014-2016 West Africa outbreak that killed more than 11,000 people, BBC News reported. Experts believe the virus may have been circulating in Congo since as early as February, but early cases were mistaken for typhoid and malaria, according to BBC News. The outbreak has hit regions where government authority is weak, health care is scarce and armed groups have operated for decades, Euronews reported. Harneis said the epidemic could be slowed within months with more staff and resources, but warned that without them it will grow more deadly and could spread into neighboring countries.

Vaccines And A Rebel Blockade

The strain driving this outbreak, known as Bundibugyo, has no proven vaccine or treatment, unlike the more common Zaire species covered by the existing Ervebo vaccine, according to BBC News. The World Health Organization said 20,000 doses of Ervebo will be used in a clinical trial to test its effectiveness against the Bundibugyo strain, while 50,000 more doses will go to front-line health workers. The WHO and the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention welcomed the vaccine shipment as a boost to the response, BBC News reported.

The response is also complicated by conflict. The M23 rebel group, which controls parts of North Kivu province, announced it would suspend shared taxis and passenger boats between government and rebel-held areas for one month starting Saturday, after two travelers tested positive for Ebola in a village under its control, according to BBC News. M23 had declared its territory Ebola-free in late June. A separate report by Save the Children found that at least 180 Congolese children have lost both parents or caregivers to the outbreak, BBC News reported.