Congo Ebola toll may top 220, Uganda cases rise

May 26, 2026

Summary

WHO said suspected Ebola deaths in Congo may exceed 220 as Uganda reported two new linked cases.

Why this matters

The outbreak has crossed into Uganda and disrupted response efforts in eastern Congo, underscoring the regional public health risk. The lack of an approved vaccine or treatment for the Bundibugyo strain adds to the challenge.

At least 220 people were suspected to have died in the ongoing Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said Monday.

Tedros said health workers were now “playing catch-up” because of delays in detecting cases.

The update came as Ugandan health authorities reported two new Ebola cases Monday, bringing the country’s total to seven. All were linked to the outbreak in Congo, which appeared to have begun days or weeks before authorities declared it May 15.

A 59-year-old Congolese man was admitted to a hospital in Kampala, Uganda’s capital, on May 11 and died three days later, before doctors knew he had Ebola. Two other Congolese nationals who sought care in Uganda later tested positive.

Ugandan health authorities on Saturday confirmed the first local infections: a driver and a health worker exposed to the man who died May 11. On Monday, the Ministry of Health said two more health workers at a private hospital in Kampala had tested positive.

The response has been hindered by local fear and distrust, as well as attacks on treatment centers in a region affected by armed violence. The World Health Organization had declared the outbreak a public health emergency of international concern.

The Bundibugyo strain behind the outbreak has no approved vaccine or treatment. A World Health Organization spokesperson told the BBC last week that University of Oxford scientists were working on a vaccine that could begin clinical trials in “two to three months.”

On Sunday evening, men entered Mongbwalu General Hospital in eastern Congo, where Ebola patients were being treated, as gunfire was reported nearby. Hospital medical director Dr. Richard Lokudu said the men demanded the bodies of two relatives. It was not immediately known whether anyone was hurt.

The attack was the third in a week on health facilities. On Saturday, residents in Mongbwalu attacked and set fire to a Doctors Without Borders tent for suspected and confirmed Ebola cases. Lokudu had said 18 people with suspected infections left that facility and were unaccounted for. On Thursday, another treatment center in Rwampara was burned after family members were barred from retrieving the body of a man suspected of dying from Ebola.

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Tedros said health workers were now “playing catch-up” because of delays in detecting cases.

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A 59-year-old Congolese man was admitted to a hospital in Kampala, Uganda’s capital, on May 11 and died three days later, before doctors knew he had Ebola. Two other Congolese nationals who sought care in Uganda later tested positive.

Ugandan health authorities on Saturday confirmed the first local infections: a driver and a health worker exposed to the man who died May 11. On Monday, the Ministry of Health said two more health workers at a private hospital in Kampala had tested positive.

The response has been hindered by local fear and distrust, as well as attacks on treatment centers in a region affected by armed violence. The World Health Organization had declared the outbreak a public health emergency of international concern.

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