![Ebola 2026: The Bundibugyo Outbreak](https://cdn.slatesource.com/2/1/f/21f74c29-73bb-4ae2-9996-04339fadbd85.webp) # Ebola 2026: The Bundibugyo Outbreak - [Made in Slatesource](https://slatesource.com/@steph/ebola-2026-the-bundibugyo-outbreak) - By [Steph](https://slatesource.com/@steph) - Created on Aug 5, 2026 ## The 20262026 EbolaEbola OutbreakOutbreak On MayMay 15, 20262026, the DemocraticDemocratic RepublicRepublic of CongoCongo and UgandaUganda simultaneouslysimultaneously declareddeclared EbolaEbola outbreaksoutbreaks causedcaused by the BundibugyoBundibugyo virusvirus, a speciesspecies of ebolavirusebolavirus for whichwhich therethere is no approvedapproved vaccinevaccine and no provenproven specificspecific treatmenttreatment. The outbreakoutbreak beganbegan in IturiIturi provinceprovince in northeasternnortheastern DRCDRC, probablyprobably as earlyearly as FebruaryFebruary 20262026, and quicklyquickly spreadspread into NorthNorth KivuKivu and SouthSouth KivuKivu provincesprovinces beforebefore crossingcrossing the borderborder into KampalaKampala, Uganda'sUganda's capitalcapital citycity. An importedimported casecase was laterlater confirmedconfirmed in FranceFrance. The WHO declareddeclared a PublicPublic HealthHealth EmergencyEmergency of InternationalInternational ConcernConcern (PHEICPHEIC) on MayMay 17, the highesthighest alarmalarm levellevel in internationalinternational healthhealth lawlaw. As of JulyJuly 3, 20262026: 1,460460 confirmedconfirmed casescases and 452452 confirmedconfirmed deathsdeaths in DRCDRC. Confirmed cases (DRC) 1,460 (as of July 3, 2026) Confirmed deaths (DRC) 452 (case fatality rate approx. 31%) Currently hospitalised 641 in isolation wards Missing contacts over 26,000 people untraced Outbreak declared May 15, 2026 (probable origin: February 2026) Global status WHO PHEIC declared May 17, 2026 🦠🏥🌍01.02.2026 – 28.07.2026 01.02.2026Probable first cases in Mongbwalu, Ituri province, northeastern DRC. Infections go undetected for weeks. 01.02.2026 15.05.2026DRC and Uganda simultaneously declare Ebola outbreaks. Lab tests confirm Bundibugyo virus. 15.05.2026 17.05.2026WHO declares a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC), the highest level of global health alarm. 17.05.2026 18.05.2026United States restricts entry for travelers from DRC, Uganda, and South Sudan in the previous 21 days. 18.05.2026 01.06.2026Outbreak spreads beyond Ituri into North Kivu and South Kivu provinces. Two deaths confirmed in Uganda. 01.06.2026 16.06.2026Africa CDC Director-General Jean Kaseya warns the outbreak could exceed the 2014-16 West Africa epidemic that killed over 11,000. 16.06.2026 01.07.2026Situation Report 9: 1,460 confirmed cases and 452 deaths in DRC. Over 26,000 contacts remain untraced. 01.07.2026 28.07.2026Estimated earliest possible date for a trial vaccine to be ready, according to WHO projections. 28.07.2026 LOADING COORDINATES... The Bundibugyo species is one of the rarest and most poorly understood of the six known ebolaviruses. Unlike the Zaire strain behind the 2014-16 West Africa epidemic (for which the rVSV-ZEBOV vaccine exists), Bundibugyo has no approved vaccine and no approved antiviral treatment. The global health response is working with experimental candidates only, and the WHO estimates a trial vaccine could take up to nine months to become available. Africa CDC Director-General Jean Kaseya said in June 2026: more than 26,000 people who may have been exposed to Ebola remain untraced and uncontacted. In a highly mobile region marked by active conflict and displacement, contact tracing is the single biggest failure point in containing the outbreak. If those contacts are not found, the epidemic curve cannot be broken. > If we don't stop the outbreak very soon, it will be worse than what we had in West Africa and eastern DRC. The 2014-16 West Africa Ebola epidemic remains the largest in history: 28,616 cases and 11,310 deaths across Guinea, Sierra Leone, and Liberia. The 2026 DRC outbreak is still far below that scale, but the pace of new cases, the absence of a vaccine, and the difficulty of contact tracing in Ituri's conflict-affected terrain mean the trajectory is being watched with acute concern by health authorities worldwide. [WHO Ebola Outbreak DRC 2026: official situation reports](https://www.who.int/emergencies/situations/ebola-outbreak---drc-2026?utm_source=slatesource) [Ebola DRC Situation Report 9, July 1 2026](https://reliefweb.int/report/democratic-republic-congo/ebola-outbreak-drc-and-region-situation-report-9-july-1-2026?utm_source=slatesource)