KINSHASA — In northwestern Congo, over 50 people have died in the last five weeks from unknown diseases. Almost half of these deaths occurred within hours of the individuals becoming ill.
Since January 21, outbreaks have been reported in two remote villages in Congo’s Equateur province, with 419 cases and 53 deaths. Health authorities are still investigating the cause and whether the cases in the two villages, which are over 120 miles (190 kilometers) apart, are connected. The method of transmission is also unknown, including whether the diseases are spreading from person to person.
According to the World Health Organization’s Africa office, the initial victims in one village were children who died within 48 hours after consuming a bat. More infections were discovered in the other village, where some patients have malaria.
Outbreaks in two remote villages
The illnesses are concentrated in two isolated villages in different health zones of Equateur province, which is 400 miles (640 kilometers) away from Kinshasa.
The first outbreak started in Boloko village after three children died within 48 hours of eating a bat. More than two weeks later, a second and larger outbreak occurred in Bomate village, where over 400 people have fallen ill. The WHO Africa office has stated that there are no confirmed connections between the cases in the two villages.
Dr. Serge Ngalebato, the medical director of Bikoro Hospital, a regional monitoring center, and a government expert involved in the outbreak response, notes that the situations in the two villages differ somewhat.
Dr. Ngalebato stated that the first outbreak has a high death rate, which they are still investigating as it is unusual. He also mentioned that many malaria cases are being observed in the second outbreak.
The WHO Africa office emphasized that the rapid progression from illness to death in Boloko is a major concern, as is the high death toll in Bomate.
What are the symptoms?
According to Congo’s Ministry of Health, approximately 80% of patients exhibit similar symptoms, including fever, chills, body aches, and diarrhea.
While these symptoms can be caused by various common infections, health officials initially feared that the symptoms and rapid deaths could indicate a hemorrhagic fever such as Ebola, which has also been linked to infected animals.
However, after testing over a dozen samples in Kinshasa, Ebola and similar diseases like Marburg have been ruled out.
The WHO is investigating various potential causes, including malaria, viral hemorrhagic fever, food or water poisoning, typhoid fever, and meningitis.
What is being done in response?
The Congolese government reports that experts have been dispatched to the villages since February 14 to investigate the cases and slow the spread.
Ngalebato mentioned that patients are responding to treatments that address the specific symptoms they are experiencing.
The remote location of the villages has hampered access to patients, and the weak healthcare infrastructure has made surveillance and patient management difficult. These challenges are typical during disease outbreaks in Congo. In December, an unidentified illness caused dozens of deaths.
Ngalebato stated that in the recent outbreaks, several victims died before experts could reach them.
The WHO Africa office has emphasized the need for urgent action to accelerate laboratory investigations, improve case management and isolation capacities, and strengthen surveillance and risk communication.
The U.S. has historically been the largest bilateral donor to Congo’s health sector, supporting the training of hundreds of field epidemiologists to help detect and control diseases across the vast country. These outbreaks were detected while the Trump administration had placed a freeze on foreign aid during a 90-day review.
Is there a link to Congo’s forests?
Concerns have long existed about diseases spreading from animals to humans in areas where people regularly consume wild animals. According to the WHO, such outbreaks in Africa have increased by over 60% in the past decade.
Experts suggest this may be occurring in Congo, which contains approximately 60% of the forests in the Congo Basin, the largest tropical forest area on Earth.
Professor Gabriel Nsakala, a public health expert at Congo’s National Pedagogical University and former employee of the Congolese health ministry on Ebola and coronavirus response programs, stated that these viruses have reservoirs in the forest. He added that as long as these forests exist, there will be occasional epidemics with mutating viruses.
“`
