KINSHASA, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO / RankWire.AI / – DR Congo’s Ebola outbreak has killed 1,916 people and produced 4,209 confirmed cases, according to official data through Aug. 7. That raises the death toll 29 above the 1,887 figure reported in the earlier update. Health authorities also counted 595 patients receiving care in isolation. Another 828 people have recovered from the Bundibugyo virus disease outbreak.
Ituri remains the center of the epidemic, with 3,636 confirmed cases and 1,551 deaths. North Kivu has recorded 470 cases and 315 deaths. Haut Uele has reported 91 cases and 44 deaths, while Tshopo has nine cases and five deaths. South Kivu has recorded three cases and one death. Overall, the outbreak has reached 53 of 140 health zones across the five affected provinces.
The latest daily increase added 89 confirmed cases and 21 deaths to the national totals. Ituri accounted for 73 of those new infections. North Kivu recorded 12, while Haut Uele recorded four. Authorities said 83.4% of identified contacts were under follow-up across the affected provinces. Health teams continue to review and harmonize case and mortality figures as surveillance records are updated.
Bundibugyo outbreak expands across eastern provinces
The Democratic Republic of the Congo confirmed the outbreak in May after laboratory testing identified Bundibugyo virus. The World Health Organization declared the outbreak a Public Health Emergency of International Concern on May 17. The virus can cause fever, weakness, body pain, vomiting and other serious symptoms. Some patients also develop bleeding. The current epidemic is the country’s 17th Ebola outbreak since the virus was first identified in 1976.
The Congolese Ministry of Health has organized response operations around surveillance, testing, isolation, contact tracing and clinical care. Health teams also use infection control measures and safe burial procedures to reduce transmission. The response covers communities facing insecurity and high population movement in parts of eastern Congo. Health workers continue to monitor contacts and investigate suspected infections across affected areas and locations linked by major travel routes.
No licensed vaccine for Bundibugyo virus
Unlike the Zaire species of Ebola virus, Bundibugyo virus currently has no licensed vaccine or specifically approved treatment. Medical care focuses on supportive treatment, including hydration, symptom management and close clinical monitoring. Research programs are evaluating candidate vaccines and investigational treatments. Regional surveillance has also tracked infections outside Congo. Uganda had recorded 20 confirmed cases and two deaths by late July, with no new confirmed case reported there after June 21.
The latest figures make the 2026 epidemic the largest documented outbreak caused by Bundibugyo virus. Transmission remains concentrated in DR Congo, particularly in Ituri and North Kivu. The rising case and death totals have continued despite expanded surveillance, isolation and contact monitoring across affected health zones. Authorities are maintaining laboratory testing, case detection, patient care and infection prevention while updating the national count as new surveillance information becomes available.
