United Nations

Congo's Ebola Outbreak Now 2nd Largest in History, World Health Organization Says

The WHO emergencies chief predicted that the outbreak in northeastern Congo will last at least another six months before it can be contained

What to Know

  • The World Health Organization says there are 379 confirmed cases of Ebola and 47 probable ones in Congo
  • The group said it is the second largest outbreak in history
  • The largest is the devastating West Africa outbreak that killed thousands a few years ago

The World Health Organization says Congo's deadly Ebola outbreak is now the second largest in history, behind the devastating West Africa outbreak that killed thousands a few years ago.

WHO emergencies chief Dr. Peter Salama late Thursday called it "a sad toll" as Congo's health ministry announced the number of cases has reached 426. That includes 379 confirmed cases and 47 probable ones.

Attacks by rebel groups and open hostility by some wary locals have posed serious challenges that Ebola workers say they have never faced before. Many venture out on critical virus containment work only with the accompaniment of U.N. peacekeepers while gunfire echoes daily.

Salama this month predicted that the outbreak in northeastern Congo will last at least another six months before it can be contained.

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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