4 die in new Ebola outbreak in Democratic Republic of Congo

Four people have died from the hemorrhagic Ebola virus during a new outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo, officials say, warning that people are resisting measures to contain the highly contagious disease.

Since the epidemic’s resurgence this month, “we have already registered six Ebola cases. We have lost four infected people,” Eugene Syalita, the provincial health minister in North Kivu province in the DRC’s east, tells AFP.

Syalita says one person died Friday and another on Saturday, while the two others died in early February.

Two patients are receiving care at an Ebola treatment center in Katwa near the major city of Butembo, he adds.

Syalita complains that the region’s residents were not taking the new outbreak seriously enough.

“Some families categorically refuse to have their homes disinfected or to hold dignified and safe funerals,” the doctor says.

“People have not yet understood that Ebola has reappeared. Everything is not yet clear for them.”

A vaccination drive was launched last Monday, but as with past outbreaks, people in the region doubt the existence of Ebola and reject measures aimed at checking its spread, including not to touch sick people and not to wash the dead.