Ebola Spreads to Sixth DRC Province as Africa CDC Warns It Could Become 'Largest in the World'

DRC's Ebola outbreak spread to a sixth province on 13 August 2026 after a death was recorded in Buta, capital of the previously unaffected Bas-Uélé province, according to Africa CDC Director-General Dr. Jean Kaseya. The victim, a motorcycle-taxi driver, had traveled to Buta from Isiro in neighboring Haut-Uélé province and sought treatment at several hospitals before dying; his colleagues attempted to forcibly take his body, prompting police intervention amid fears of further exposure. Bas-Uélé borders the Central African Republic, where recurring armed violence has displaced thousands into the province, and its poor roads and limited communications networks complicate response. Kaseya warned: 'If we do not stop this outbreak, it will last more than a year and will be the largest in the world.' WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the outbreak is on track to surpass the 2014–2016 West Africa epidemic (11,310 deaths) as the deadliest on record. DRC's situation report for the same date (data to 12 August) recorded 4,665 confirmed cases and 2,184 deaths across 54 of 151 health zones — up 99 cases and 56 deaths from the prior report. Separately, Mercy Corps warned that confirmed cases now sit just 35km from the South Sudan border along high-risk travel corridors, with 60–70% of new cases occurring outside monitored contacts.