Congo Commences Ebola Vaccination After 26 Deaths

Congo authorities have begun an Ebola vaccination campaign in a northwest provincial capital of the Eastern African country, after the deadly virus left 26 people dead according to the World Health Organisation, WHO.

The vaccination drive started a day after the health ministry announced that a nurse had died from Ebola in Bikoro, the rural northwestern town where the outbreak announced in early May began.

The vaccine, called rVSV-ZEBOV, will likely be distributed to some 8,000 to 10,000 people in its first phase, Peter Salama, deputy director-general of emergency preparedness and response at the WHO, said Friday.

Recall that WHO had last week announced that the deadly outbreak in DR Congo has spread from the countryside into the city of Mbandaka, which is the transport hub on the River Congo with a population of more than 1 million people, prompting fears that the virus could now spread further, threatening the capital Kinshasa.

The Congolese health delegation and representatives of the WHO and the United Nations, have arrived the northwestern city of Mbandaka where Ebola cases have been identified, to launch the vaccination campaign Monday.

The first batch of vaccines are being given to health workers and second batch will be given to all those who have been in contact with someone who has Ebola. For each confirmed case, the WHO estimates there are between 100 and 150 people who are eligible for vaccination.

“I’m glad I have received the vaccine against Ebola, I ask the others (contacts and nursing staff) to get vaccinated to protect themselves. Everyone must adhere to this vaccination campaign with the goal of protection,” Dr Eric Ekutshu, a doctor in the Wangata health zone in Mbandaka said.

Two dozen vaccinators, including Congolese and Guineans who administered the vaccine in their country during the 2014-2016 outbreak, are in Mbandaka to start injecting the 540 doses that have arrived, Congolese health minister, Dr. Oly Ilunga Kalenga said.

This is Congo’s ninth Ebola outbreak since 1976, when the disease was first identified. The virus is initially transmitted to people from wild animals, including bats and monkeys. It is spread via contact with the bodily fluids of those infected.