# Ebola Outbreak in Eastern DR Congo Hits 515 Cases as WHO Declares a Global Health Emergency

*2026-06-09 22:02 UTC · Other · 1 min read*

> WHO declares the eastern DR Congo Ebola outbreak a global health emergency, with 515 confirmed cases, 91 deaths and spread of the rare Bundibugyo strain into Uganda.

The World Health Organization has declared the Ebola outbreak in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo a public health emergency of international concern. As of June 8, health authorities reported 515 confirmed cases and 91 deaths across the Ituri, North Kivu and South Kivu provinces, with Ituri as the epicenter. The illness is the rare Bundibugyo strain, for which there is no approved vaccine or treatment, and it has crossed into Uganda, which has confirmed 19 cases and two deaths.

The US CDC warned the outbreak could rival the 2014-2016 West Africa epidemic. In a stark projection, it estimated that if only 20% of patients are isolated, there is a 65% chance case numbers top 20,000 within three months. Response teams on the ground face serious obstacles, including gaps in contact tracing, limited treatment capacity and shortages of essential medicines.

On June 5, the WHO and the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention launched a joint response plan seeking $518 million to support preparedness and containment across the region. Three candidate vaccines are in development but none has yet been approved.

## Sources

- [news.un.org](https://news.un.org/en/story/2026/06/1167678)
- [npr.org](https://www.npr.org/2026/06/08/nx-s1-5849203/ebola-outbreak-drc-africa-cdc)
- [cdc.gov](https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2026/update-on-ebola-outbreak-in-the-democratic-republic-of-the-congo-and-uganda-6-5-2026.html)

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TechTools News · https://techtools.cz/tools/news/article/1803-ebola-outbreak-in-eastern-dr-congo-hits-515-cases-as-who-declares-a-global
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