Ebola outbreak still spreading in Congo, and “that means we have a shortage of cases,” says WHO

Kampala, Uganda — The The Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo and neighboring Uganda is still spreading one month after the disease was announced. The number of confirmed cases rose between Monday and Tuesday to more than 800, an increase of about 300 from last week.

The United Nations’ World Health Organization has warned that the virus is “increasing” in its “local spread” in Congo, and experts say it is a race against time to prevent it from becoming a health crisis.

In the national park of Ituri, Congolese security forces fired guns to disperse an angry crowd trying to take away the body of a person who died of Ebola. Health workers were trying to exhume the body to protect the public – even in death, victims are highly contagious.

The WHO said “massive community transmission continues” in the Central African region, and new cases and deaths have emerged.

WHO Emergency Manager Dr. Marie-Roseline Belizaire told CBS News that deaths are still being reported by the Congolese community, and “that means we are missing cases,” as the disease continues to spread undiagnosed among the population.

“A month after the disease was announced, I am still worried,” he said.

Efforts to locate anyone believed to have had contact with known Ebola cases have also seen progress. There has been some progress, but Congolese health workers say they have only been able to follow up with half of the people who have come into contact with confirmed cases. In real numbers, this means that about 3,000 potential contacts are unknown.

Across the Ugandan border, authorities are in active security mode. As soon as CBS News arrived in the country, all members of the team had to scan a QR code and declare that no one had come in contact with bats, attended a funeral or had Ebola symptoms such as fever or vomiting.

But that was at a major airport. Uganda shares a nearly 500-mile border with Congo — about the length of the state of Florida — and despite being officially closed during the outbreak, people continue to freely travel across it.

“Our problem is how it is handled across the border with Congo,” said the National Director of Public Health in Uganda, Dr. Daniel Kyabayinze, told CBS News. “We know that all our cases have been taken there.”

As of June 10, the WHO said at least 19 cases of Ebola have been confirmed in Uganda, including two deaths.

Kyabainze said the movement of people across the border may be “very small” under the restrictions, but he could not rule it out.

“We are the same people. The culture and language of Uganda and the people of Congo are the same,” he said. “They are the same families. So, even if you have ungazetted (illegal) crossings, the families still communicate.”

“Putting a strong ribbon, or non-stop movement on porous borders is almost impossible, it is like stopping the wind from blowing,” said Kyabainze.

He and other epidemiologists told CBS News this week that they are pleased with the preventive measures Uganda has implemented, and no new cases have been reported in the country in 11 days. But they say they continue to watch the outbreak in Congo – and the two countries’ shared border – very closely.