Congo’s Ebola outbreak has recorded more than 4,000 deaths , authorities said, as they struggle to contain the spread of the virus.
Some health workers gathered in Bunia, the capital of northeastern Ituri province, the heart of the outbreak. They were demanding payment for wages owed but were quickly dispersed by officials. The protesting workers included surveillance team members, who identify people exposed to infected patients. Front-line workers have gone on strike several times since the outbreak began, further hampering efforts to contain the disease.
Congo announced an outbreak on May 15, caused by the rare Bundibugyo virus, which has no known treatment or vaccine. A senior UN official said that an Ebola-hit camp housing a transit centre for infected patients was burned by soldiers earlier this week as they were looking for weapons in Kigonze, on the outskirts of Bunia, forcing 19,000 people in the camp to flee.
They waved placards saying, “No money, no data!” and “No payment for months. “The enormous challenge of halting the spread of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) just became even harder after a key transit centre for patients requiring treatment burned down in Ituri province,” the United Nations said. Julien Harneis, the UN senior Ebola coordinator, said creating Ebola transit and treatment centres has been a struggle, requiring money and staff, all of which are in short supply. “The human cost of this crisis is unprecedented in the DRC, with communities facing the largest Ebola disease outbreak ever recorded in the country,” MSF said.
