VIRUS CRISIS

WHO Reveals ‘Huge’ Death Rate From Ebola Outbreak

Health officials say armed conflict and displacement have made the outbreak harder to contain.

The World Health Organization has revealed that the death rate for the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo is a devastating 30 to 50 percent. Speaking to reporters in Geneva on Friday, Anaïs Legend of the WHO’s high threat pathogens team called the death rate “huge,” and said it means “five out of 10 people are likely to die.” The organization has recorded 10 confirmed and 223 suspected Ebola deaths in the DRC since the outbreak was declared on May 15, out of more than 1,000 confirmed and suspected cases. It’s the country’s 17th recorded Ebola pandemic since the disease was first identified in 1976. The death rate has averaged 50 percent across all outbreaks, according to the WHO. On Friday, the organization’s director general, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, planned to travel to the outbreak epicenter in north-east Ituri province, a mineral-rich region fought over by armed groups. Conflict and displacement have made containment harder, Tedros said Thursday, as he called on the warring parties to declare a ceasefire until the outbreak is over.