DR Congo river boat under quarantine for Ebola after 5 deaths

Congo authorities are implementing Ebola and cholera screening for all 255 passengers aboard the intercepted Yingfeng 2 river boat near Bende Bende port, 65km upstream from Kinshasa. Health Minister Roger Kamba stated that the precautionary measures were taken after a passenger with fever and diarrhea, who had disembarked in Mongala Province, died in a hospital.

Additional fatalities include two adults, a three-year-old child, and a newborn. Health ministry and WHO teams have boarded the vessel to set up a mobile lab for tests. No positive cases have been reported yet, but the 21-day incubation period will determine if anyone tests positive. The boat departed from Mongala 22 days ago, a region without Ebola cases.

The infected passenger had been traveling on the boat for several days before treatment in Pimu health zone, Mongala. The boat had traveled over 1,700km downstream to Kinshasa before interception. Security services are directed to quarantine the Yingfeng 2 offshore, in accordance with WHO guidelines, to prevent the potential spread of the virus into the capital.

Public health teams are prepared to act once the boat is secured. Congo is currently facing its 17th Ebola outbreak since May 15, caused by the rare Bundibugyo species. Three months into the outbreak, infections and deaths continue to rise, with 3,973 confirmed cases and 1,801 deaths, making it the second deadliest Ebola outbreak.

In Kinshasa, preparations for a potential Bundibugyo response are being intensified, with heightened surveillance and rapid-response capacity at Maluku, the city's primary entry point.