The current Ebola outbreak could become the deadliest in history, the International Rescue Committee warns

The International Rescue Committee (IRC) has issued a stern warning that the current Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo is spreading at a pace far beyond the capacity of the local and international response to contain it.

The humanitarian organization stressed that this outbreak threatens to become "the most serious and most severe outbreak ever recorded", unless the international community acts urgently and immediately to inject funding and coordinate medical efforts on the ground.

Alarming numbers and a rare strain without a vaccine

According to the latest data from the World Health Organization (WHO), the number of suspected cases of HIV in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has exceeded 900 cases, including 220 suspected deaths.

The danger is no longer confined to the Congolese border, as the epidemic has officially spread to neighboring Uganda, which has so far recorded 7 confirmed cases, including at least one death.

Adding to the concern of the global medical community, the current outbreak is attributed to the Bundibugyo virus, an extremely rare strain of the Ebola virus.

The danger of this strain lies in the fact that there is no proven or scientifically approved vaccine to counter it so far, unlike other strains for which vaccines have been developed in the past years, making efforts to break the chain of infection and isolate those infected a very complex and dangerous task for medical staff.

Security fragility and shrinking international aid

In a press release, the International Rescue Committee (IRC) (which is based in New York and has a humanitarian legacy that stretches back to its founding in 1933), called for urgent international funding. She explained that the raging regional armed conflicts and the decline in the volume of global financial assistance are severely hampering efforts to contain the virus.

Bob Kitchen, deputy head of the emergency department at the International Rescue Committee, said: "The current alarm signs are sounding the alarm at an unprecedented rate. "Eastern DRC is facing this outbreak and is extremely fragile, with much less preparedness than in 2018-2020, when more than 2,000 people died."

"The escalation of the armed conflict and the reduction in funding for global aid has dismantled the protection and healthcare system at the worst possible time. The lessons learned from previous outbreaks are very clear and indisputable: delays in response cost human lives."

Sacrifices on the front line

The danger to humanitarian workers was tragically evident last week, when three volunteers working with the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) died after contracting suspected cases of Ebola infection in Ituri province, which is currently classified as the country's main epicenter of the outbreak.

The Red Cross reports indicated that the three volunteers, Alikana Odumusi Augustan, Sizabo Catanabo and Ejiko Chandrao Vivian, picked up the likely fatal infection while carrying out their humanitarian duty in handling the bodies of the deceased for safe burial and preventing the spread of the virus, highlighting the lack of adequate personal protective equipment in the field.

Ebola has been one of the deadliest viral diseases in humans since it was first detected in 1976, with clinical symptoms of a severe high fever, severe weakness, diarrhea, vomiting, and kidney and liver failure, which in many cases progress to severe internal and external bleeding leading to death.