Record daily jump in DRC Ebola outbreak takes death toll to 178

The outbreak caused by the rare Bundibugyo virus strain has reached 782 confirmed cases.The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has reported a record daily increase in infections as the Ebola outbreak impacting the country appears to accelerate.The Ministry of Public Health confirmed on Sunday that 72 new cases had been diagnosed over the previous 24 hours, bringing the number of infected to 782. The death toll has also grown, with another 32 people dying to push the total to 181 deaths.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3DR Congo arrive in the US for the World Cup after Ebola quarantinelist 2 of 3Alarm as Ebola spreads into new areas of DR Congolist 3 of 3Clashes break out at DRC rally against presidential term-limit changeend of listThe rising numbers come as regional conflict, patient escapes, and limited contact tracing undermine containment efforts. Alarm was sounded last week as the virus moved into new areas of the DRC.The Bundibugyo virus strain has a 22.8 percent death rate so far, with 40 patients recovering, officials said.“We remain committed to supporting affected countries until transmission is stopped. We call on partners and donors to urgently mobilise resources to strengthen the response and save lives,” Jean Kaseya, director general of the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, said on Sunday.The outbreak stems from the rare Bundibugyo strain, which has no approved vaccine or treatment, unlike the Zaire virus responsible for the DRC’s previous 16 Ebola outbreaks.Contact tracing coverage has plummeted to 56.5 percent, a sharp decline from the 95% target, Health Ministry officials said.Doctors Without Borders, known by its French initials MSF, warned that “no one knows the true scale” of the outbreak due to dangerous gaps in surveillance and testing.Eastern Ituri province remains the outbreak’s epicentre, harbouring nearly 95 percent of all confirmed cases. The virus has since breached into North Kivu and South Kivu provinces and spread across the border to Uganda.