BizCommunity - 25 Apr 2022
"A new case of Ebola has been confirmed in northwestern Democratic Republic of Congo, prompting health authorities to enforce urgent containment measures just four months after the previous outbreak came to an end.
The case, a 31-year old male, was detected in the city of Mbandaka, capital of Congo's Equateur province. Around 74 of his contacts are being tracked, the health ministry said in a statement.
The patient began showing symptoms on April 5, but did not seek treatment for more than a week, the World Health Organization (WHO) said in a statement. He was admitted to an Ebola treatment centre on April 21 and died later that day.
"Time is not on our side," said Dr Matshidiso Moeti, the WHO's regional director for Africa. "The disease has had a two-week head start and we are now playing catch-up."
Mbandaka, a trading hub on the banks of the Congo River, has contended with two previous outbreaks -- in 2018 and in 2020. It is a city where people live in close proximity, with road, water and air links to the capital Kinshasa."
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