A previously unknown illness has claimed the lives of more than 50 people in northwestern Congo, with authorities and the World Health Organization (WHO) expressing growing concerns. Doctors on the ground reported on Monday February 24 that most patients have died within 48 hours of showing symptoms, a rapid progression that has raised alarm.
Serge Ngalebato, the medical director of Bikoro Hospital, a key regional monitoring Centre, highlighted the severity of the situation, stating that the speed of the illness is particularly worrying.
The outbreak, which began on January 21 in the town of Boloko, has so far resulted in 419 reported cases, with 53 fatalities. The first cases were linked to three children who ate bat meat and developed haemorrhagic fever symptoms before dying within two days. This incident has reignited concerns over zoonotic diseases, where illnesses are transmitted from animals to humans. Such outbreaks, often associated with the consumption of wild animals, have increased by more than 60% across Africa in the past decade, according to the WHO.
Following a second outbreak in the town of Bomate on February 9, samples from 13 cases were sent for testing to the National Institute for Biomedical Research in Kinshasa. The results were negative for Ebola and other common haemorrhagic fever diseases like Marburg. Some samples, however, tested positive for malaria. A similar mystery illness last year, which also killed dozens, was later linked to malaria, suggesting the current outbreak could follow a similar pattern.