60% of Ebola deaths in DRC outbreak occur outside treatment centres

As of 20 August 2026, the DRC's 17th Ebola epidemic has reached 5,290 confirmed cases and 2,516 deaths. Over the past six weeks, roughly 60% of weekly fatalities occurred outside treatment centres, indicating transmission chains undetected until after death. Contact follow-up has improved to 84%, but the residual gap leaves unmonitored exposure in an outbreak of this scale.