The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has communicated that, of the 69 displaced persons camps located in the province of Ituri, in the northeast of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), at least five have already reported Ebola infections, a circumstance that, according to the agency, "further aggravates" the outbreak declared in the country on May 15.
"Agencies are on high alert in response to news that the Bundibugyo strain of the Ebola virus, which is spreading rapidly in the DRC, has infected 19 internally displaced persons and caused the death of five of them," UNHCR has stated in a press release.
The UN High Commissioner for Refugees has reminded that the provinces of Ituri —where, according to Congolese health authorities, 87.1% of the accumulated cases are concentrated—, North Kivu, South Kivu, Haut-Uele, and Tshopo, the five affected by the ongoing outbreak, together host about 4.4 million internally displaced persons.
In this context, UNHCR has warned that the displaced population residing in camps, often lacking adequate water and sanitation systems and showing distrust towards health services among many of its members, lives in an "environment conducive to the spread of Ebola."
According to the most recent balance released by the National Institute of Public Health of the DRC, 3,973 infections have been confirmed so far, of which 674 correspond to isolated or hospitalized patients; while the number of deceased rises to 1,801, placing the fatality rate at 45.3%.