New Ebola Cases In Congo Unrelated To West African Outbreak

If there can be any good news – or at least not further disheartening news – coming out of the African continent regarding this year’s Ebola outbreaks, we have one positive report this morning. The World Health Organization has just confirmed that the newly-identified cases of Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) in the Democratic Republic of Congo is genetically unrelated to the strain currently circulating in Liberia, Guinea, Sierra Leone, and Nigeria. A WHO collaborating research center in Franceville, Gabon, the Centre International de Recherches Médicales, had previously identified six Ebola positive samples sent to the laboratory.

The Ebola Pandemic Reaches Another Country – Congo Confirms Two Deaths

Authorities in the Democratic Republic of Congo say two people have died from Ebola in the country’s north-west. They are the first reported Ebola cases outside West Africa since the outbreak there began, although it is not clear if they are directly linked to that outbreak. So far 1,427 people have died from the virus.