Ebola killing a victim every 30 minutes in DR Congo, says UN

Ebola has claimed over 15,000 lives in Africa since 1976, according to the World Health Organization. In the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), the Ebola outbreak has taken a deadly turn, with the virus now killing one person every 30 minutes, according to Tom Fletcher, the UN's top humanitarian official. This rate of deaths comes as the outbreak is the fastest growing on record, with more than 4,500 confirmed cases and at least 2,128 deaths since its declaration on May 15.

Fletcher emphasized the urgent need for international action, stating that "we need speed, scale and solidarity before this virus gets even further ahead of us." The outbreak has spread to six provinces in the DRC, as well as Uganda and near the border with South Sudan. Despite receiving nearly $300 million from countries, Fletcher has allocated an additional $30.5 million from an emergency UN fund, bringing the total assistance to $54.5 million.

To combat the outbreak, Fletcher called for doubling the number of teams ensuring safe and dignified burials, tripling the treatment capacity, improving contact tracing, and deploying more experienced managers. He stressed the importance of meeting the immense needs for water, hygiene, healthcare, and other basic services in the region.

Fletcher warned that "this 17th outbreak of Ebola is caused by the Bundibugyo strain for which there is no known treatment or vaccine." With Ebola winning in the DRC, Fletcher urged the world to "wake up and show up" to stop the virus from outrunning the response.