El Gobierno de la Rep\u00fablica Democr\u00e1tica del Congo (RDC) anunci\u00f3 hoy que se est\u00e1 produciendo un nuevo brote de enfermedad por el virus del Ebola en la zona de salud de Wangata, Mbandaka, en la provincia de Oquateur. El anuncio se produce como un brote de \u00e9bola largo, dif\u00edcil y complejo en el este de la RDC est\u00e1 en su fase final, mientras que el pa\u00eds tambi\u00e9n lucha contra COVID-19 y el mayor brote de sarampi\u00f3n del mundo.<\/p>\n
Geneva\/Brazzaville\/Kinshasa –\u00a0<\/strong>The Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) announced today that a new outbreak of Ebola virus disease is occurring in Wangata health zone, Mbandaka, in \u00c9quateur province. The announcement comes as a long, difficult and complex Ebola outbreak in eastern DRC is in its final phase, while the country also battles COVID-19 and the world\u2019s largest measles outbreak.<\/p>\n Initial information from the Ministry of Health is that\u00a0eight Ebola\u00a0cases have so far been detected in Wangata, of which\u00a0four have died (one laboratory confirmed case and three probable cases)\u00a0 and four are\u00a0alive (two laboratory confirmed and two probable).\u00a0It is likely more people will be identified with the disease as surveillance activities increase.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is a reminder that COVID-19 is not the only health threat people face,\u201d said Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General. \u201cAlthough much of our attention is on the pandemic, WHO is continuing to monitor and respond to many other health emergencies.\u201d<\/p>\n This is the DRC\u2019s 11th outbreak of Ebola since the virus was first discovered in the country in 1976. The city of Mbandaka and its surrounding area were the site of DRC\u2019s 9th Ebola outbreak<\/a>, which took place from May to July 2018.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s happening at a challenging time, but WHO has worked over the last two years with health authorities, Africa CDC and other partners to strengthen national capacity to respond to outbreaks,\u201d said Dr Matshidiso Moeti, WHO Regional Director for Africa. \u201cTo reinforce local leadership, WHO plans to send a team to support scaling up the response. Given the proximity of this new outbreak to busy transport routes and vulnerable neighbouring countries we must act quickly.\u201d<\/p>\n WHO is already on the ground in Mbandaka supporting the response to this outbreak, as part of capacity built during the 2018 outbreak. The team supported the collection and testing of samples, and reference to the national laboratory for confirmation. Contact tracing is underway. Work is ongoing to send additional supplies from North Kivu and from Kinshasa to support the government-led response. A further 25 people are expected to arrive in Mbandaka tomorrow. WHO is also working to ensure that essential health services are provided to communities despite these emergency events.<\/p>\n