The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention has announced that the confirmed death toll from the Ebola virus outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo has exceeded 200 cases.
The Centres' representative, Wissam Mankoula, said the total number of deaths has reached 204, including fatalities recorded in Uganda, while the number of confirmed infections has risen to 894 cases, of which 875 are in the Democratic Republic of Congo, with 74 people having recovered.
He added that the number of cases recorded during the first month of the outbreak is the highest compared to any previous outbreak of the virus, noting that the current toll is more than three times that of the second-largest outbreak over the same time period.
He expressed concern over the declining number of contacts being followed up, which stands at no more than 4,112 people, compared to approximately 35,000 believed to have been in contact with those infected, stressing that health authorities remain far from having the situation under control.