The Democratic Republic of the Congo has reported 4,449 confirmed Ebola cases, including 2,061 deaths, as health agencies race to contain an outbreak that has expanded rapidly across the country’s northeast.

The latest figures were released in Congolese government data reported by Reuters late on Tuesday. They indicate a confirmed-case fatality rate of roughly 46 per cent, although that calculation can change as new cases are recorded and patients complete treatment.

The outbreak is caused by Bundibugyo virus, one of the viruses that can cause Ebola disease in humans. It was first detected in Uganda in 2007 and has caused fewer documented outbreaks than the Zaire strain associated with the devastating West Africa epidemic of 2014–16.

The World Health Organization says the current outbreak began in northeastern Ituri province and is Congo’s 17th Ebola outbreak since the virus was identified in 1976. It was officially declared in May, and the WHO later classified it as a Public Health Emergency of International Concern.

Transmission remains intense

A WHO situation report based on data through August 9 recorded 4,381 confirmed cases and 2,011 confirmed deaths. The higher Congolese government figures released later show how quickly the count is changing.

Ituri remained the centre of the outbreak in the WHO report, accounting for more than 85 per cent of confirmed cases. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says cases have also been detected in Haut-Uele, North Kivu, South Kivu and Tshopo provinces, with linked transmission reported in Uganda.

The CDC has described the outbreak as the second-largest Ebola outbreak on record and said it is spreading substantially faster than earlier outbreaks. Conflict, displacement, weak health systems, difficult terrain and community mistrust can all make contact tracing and patient isolation harder in eastern Congo.

Ebola does not spread through the air in the same way as influenza or COVID-19. Transmission generally occurs through direct contact with the blood or other body fluids of an infected person, contaminated objects, or the body of someone who has died from the disease.

Symptoms can include fever, severe weakness, body pain, vomiting and diarrhoea; bleeding occurs in some cases. Early supportive treatment, including careful fluid and electrolyte management and treatment of complications, can improve survival.

No approved vaccine for Bundibugyo strain

Vaccines used against Zaire ebolavirus are not approved as protection against Bundibugyo virus. The CDC said there were no US-approved vaccines or specific therapeutics for this strain, making surveillance, isolation, infection control and supportive care especially important.

The CDC has advised people to avoid non-essential travel to some affected Congolese provinces and to avoid all travel to Ituri and North Kivu unless they are involved in humanitarian or emergency work. The overall risk to people far from the affected region remains low, but international coordination is essential to prevent cross-border spread.

India has not reported a linked case in the available official updates. Indian travellers and organisations working in the region should follow advisories from health and diplomatic authorities rather than relying on social-media claims.

The scale of the outbreak makes funding, laboratory capacity, safe treatment centres and protection for health workers urgent priorities. The response will also depend on public trust: families must be willing to report symptoms early, allow contact tracing and follow safe-burial procedures.

The figures are changing quickly, so the confirmed case and death totals should be checked again immediately before publication.