Kinshasa, Aug 11 (IANS) The death toll from the ongoing Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has surpassed 2,000, according to figures released Tuesday by the country’s public health authorities.

The country has recorded 4,381 confirmed cases, including 2,011 deaths, with the overall case fatality rate standing at 45.9 per cent. Over 700 patients remain in isolation or hospital care, while 869 people have recovered, according to official data.

Cases have been reported in five provinces — Ituri, North Kivu, South Kivu, Haut-Uele and Tshopo — with the province of Ituri remaining the epicentre of the outbreak, Xinhua News Agency reported.

“Today the Ebola epidemic surpassed 2,000 deaths, half of these in the last 20 days,” UN Senior Ebola Coordinator Julien Harneis said on social media Tuesday.

“All of us in the response, aid workers, organisations, governments, donors, with the community, must do more, and do it today, to save lives and stop Ebola,” he said.

The DRC government declared an outbreak on May 15. Ebola is caused by the Bundibugyo ebolavirus. There is currently no approved vaccine or specific treatment for the virus species behind the outbreak, although clinical trials of candidate vaccines and therapeutics are underway.

The outbreak has become the largest ever recorded in the DRC and the second-largest Ebola outbreak globally, after the 2014-2016 West Africa epidemic.

On Monday, a senior World Health Organisation (WHO) official said that the Ebola outbreak in DRC may have begun as early as February, months before it was officially declared in May, according to genetic sequencing studies.

Speaking at a press conference in Bunia, capital of the eastern Ituri Province and the epicentre of the outbreak, WHO Regional Director for Africa Mohamed Yakub Janabi said genetic sequencing indicated that the virus had likely been circulating for months before the outbreak was detected.

“We are chasing the virus. The virus is ahead of us,” Janabi said, pointing to the prolonged period during which transmission may have gone undetected.

Some infections during the early phase of the outbreak may have initially been attributed to other illnesses, including malaria and typhoid, contributing to delays in recognising the extent of Ebola transmission, Janabi said, warning of prolonged undetected circulation.

–IANS

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