Ebola outbreak in Congo kills dozens, Africa's CDC says

Kinshasa, Congo — Africa CDC, the continent's top public health body, on Friday confirmed a new Ebola outbreak in Congo's remote Ituri province, with 246 suspected cases and 65 deaths recorded so far. The deaths and suspected cases have been recorded mainly in the Mongwalu and Rwampara health zones, the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention said in a statement. The Ebola virus is highly contagious and can be contracted through bodily fluids such as vomit, blood, or semen. The disease it causes is rare but severe, and often fatal. "Four deaths have been reported among laboratory-confirmed cases. Suspected cases have also been reported in Bunia, pending confirmation," the agency said, referring to the capital of Ituri province, near the border with Uganda. It said preliminary laboratory results have detected the Ebola virus in 13 of 20 samples tested. A health worker sprays disinfectant on a colleague after working at an Ebola treatment center in Beni, eastern Congo, in September 2018. AP Photo / Al-hadji Kudra Maliro The latest outbreak comes around five months after Congo's last Ebola outbreak was declared after 43 deaths. Ituri is in a remote eastern part of Congo characterized by poor road networks and is more than 620 miles from the nation's capital of Kinshasa. …