The story so far: The Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has now become the deadliest in the country’s history as deaths cross 2,300 mark as of August 18, 2026.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the outbreak is on track to surpass the 2014-16 outbreak in West Africa, the deadliest on record with over 28,616 cases and 11,325 deaths.
As cases and deaths mount, the strife-torn DRC is struggling to contain the spread of the deadly disease.
What is the latest situation?
The country has reported over 2,325 deaths, exceeding the toll of 2,299 reported in the previous outbreak, according to the WHO.
The fatality rate has increased to nearly 47%.
The number of confirmed cases stood at 4,945, including the 101 new cases detected in the previous 24 hours.
Around 1,040 people have recovered and while 730 are still hospitalised or in isolation.
This ebola outbreak — the 17th in the country — spread to a sixth province with a death reported in Bas-uele.
While Ituri still shoulders a heavy burden with a maximum number of cases, the disease has also affected people in North Kivu, South Kivu, Haut-Uele and Tshopo provinces.
It was declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concern by the WHO three months ago.
Why is it difficult to contain the growing Ebola outbreak in DRC? | Explained Why is the outbreak causing concern?
The current outbreak is caused by the rare Bundibugyo strain of the virus which does not have any approved vaccines or treatments.
Authorities then have to rely on identifying cases to check transmission.
The ongoing rebel conflict, inadequate health surveillance and other facilities, deep distrust in authorities, burial practices which involve touching of the body (Ebloa spreads through contact with blood or bodily fluids of a person infected with or has died of disease), misinformation regarding ebola has severely impeded containment efforts.
A recent strike by health care workers at the epicentre of the outbreak over payment dues also added to the woes.
Working in the front-lines, these workers have also been attacked by rebels and crowds which is a big cause of concern amid a deadly outbreak.
Healthcare workers demonstrate outside the Elikya Ebola Treatment Center to demand payment of two months of back benefits, in Bunia, Democratic Republic of Congo on July 25, 2026. | Photo The WHO has warned that the outbreak is “outpacing the response”.
“We are chasing the virus, the virus is ahead of us,” WHO Africa director Dr Mohamed Janabi said while the United Nations warned that the epidemic was now killing one person every 30 minutes.
Bundibugyo ebolavirus | A deadly pathogen Why does detection matter in this outbreak?
Amid UN’s warning that the Bundibugyo outbreak is taking lives at a much faster rate, experts stress the need for quick detection and rapid contact tracing.
“..we’re still seeing many cases detected very late, when treatment is less likely to succeed, with many identified only after they die in the community,” said Thomas Parisch, a public health specialist recently deployed to DRC with Medecins Sans Frontieres Though the outbreak was formally declared on May 15, WHO says genetic sequencing showed that the virus had actually begun circulating in February.
The country’s Health Minister had earlier cited the case of first-reported death and the subsequent delays as a cause for escalation of the spread of the disease.
Sounding concern, WHO Director-General said on August 17, 2026, “What worries me most is where people are dying – at home, in their communities, outside treatment centres, and outside known contact lists.
Every death like that signals a chain of transmission we have not yet found.” “Until each chain is broken, the outbreak continues – and the risk does not stop at the DRC’s borders,” he added.
What is being done to contain the outbreak?
The WHO has been working alongside local authorities to step up surveillance and containment efforts.
It has also been working to expand the number of treatment centers and training workers to staff these centers.
Health workers wearing personal protective equipment (PPE) attending a training by the medical charity Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) on August 5, 2026. | Photo Clinical trials for two possible treatments began earlier in DRC while various firms are also evaluating and developing vaccines for the strain.
UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher recently announced the allocation of an additional $30.5 million and the deployment of 20 more staff to aid the response on the frontlines.
“We need speed, scale and solidarity before this virus gets even further ahead of us,” he said Experts have cited the need to close diagnostic gaps and the need for sustained regional diagnostic and genomic surveillance to identify outbreaks.
