World / Africa JOINT EFFORT DRC and UN teams scramble to stem spread of Ebola virus BL PREMIUM

Kinshasa — The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and UN agencies are deploying emergency teams of specialists to try to prevent the spread of an Ebola epidemic suspected to have infected more than 30 people. The latest suspected case was reported on Friday in the northwestern province of Equateur, which Health Minister Oly Ilunga Kalenga visited with officials from the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the UN Children’s Fund. "We have to pool our efforts quickly and align ourselves with the government response plan to fight this new epidemic effectively," Kalenga was quoted as saying in a joint statement. The DRC first reported the outbreak, centred on the village of Ikoko Impenge, on Tuesday, with 32 suspected or confirmed cases of the disease, including 18 deaths since April 4. Some deaths occurring as early as January have not yet been linked to the epidemic. Officials are racing to stop the virus from spreading out of control, as was in West Africa in 2014-2016, when it kille...