Confirmed cases in the Ebola outbreak in eastern Congo have reached 1,003, including 254 deaths, officials said, as tracing those who had been in contact with patients remains a major challenge.
A total of 100 people have recovered in the outbreak concentrated in the Ituri province since it was declared on May 15, Congo's Ministry of Health said Sunday.
At least 365 patients are in hospitals or in isolation, it said.
The Ebola outbreak caused by the rare Bundibugyo virus, which has no vaccines or treatment, was the worst ever in its first month.
Officials admit there could be far more cases they still don't know about and that the peak of the outbreak is still ahead.
Contact tracing remains a key issue for local authorities, who have only achieved a 55% coverage rate, the ministry said.
Displaced persons at risk as unexplained deaths reported in a camp
At the Kigonze displacement camp in Bunia, the capital of Ituri province, camp officials said Friday that 10 people had died last week in unusual circumstances, raising the fear of a possible outbreak in the camp of over 20,000 displaced people.
The U.N. refugee agency has said at least 2 million people forcibly displaced from their homes, including over 320,000 refugees, live in areas at risk of Ebola in Congo.
