Confirmed Ebola cases in Congo top 1,000, deaths surpass 250, officials say

Bunia, Congo — Confirmed cases in the Ebola outbreak in eastern Congo have reached 1,003, including 254 deaths, officials said, as tracing those who had been in contact with patients remains a major challenge. A total of 100 people have recovered in the outbreak concentrated in the Ituri province since it was declared on May 15, Congo's Ministry of Health said Sunday. At least 365 patients are in hospitals or in isolation, it said. The Ebola outbreak caused by the rare Bundibugyo virus, which has no vaccines or treatment, was the worst ever in its first month. Officials admit there could be far more cases they still don't know about and that the peak of the outbreak is still ahead. Medical workers escort an Ebola patient to an Ebola treatment center in Mongbwalu, Ituri province, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, on June 20, 2026. Xinhua via Getty Images Contact tracing remains a key issue for local authorities, who have only achieved a 55% coverage rate, the ministry said. "If you want to control an outbreak, especially Ebola outbreak, you must know the index case. We don't have confidence on when this outbreak started," the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director-General Dr. Jean Kaseya told The Associated Press last week. Officials also are yet to identify the patient zero and trace more than 35,000 people who have come in contact with infected individuals as of last week, authorities said. …