Deadly Mystery Illness Spreads In Northwestern Congo

 

A fast-spreading and unidentified illness has claimed over 50 lives in northwestern Congo within the past five weeks, alarming health experts. The disease was first detected in three children who reportedly ate a bat before succumbing to severe symptoms within 48 hours.

Rapid Onset and High Fatality Rate

The illness presents with symptoms including fever, vomiting, and internal bleeding—characteristics commonly associated with hemorrhagic fevers such as Ebola, Marburg, dengue, and yellow fever. However, preliminary tests conducted on over a dozen samples have ruled out these known viruses.

“What’s really concerning is the short time between the onset of symptoms and death, which is around 48 hours in most cases,” said Serge Ngalebato, medical director of Bikoro Hospital, one of the regional monitoring centers.

The outbreak began on January 21 in the village of Boloko and has since spread, with 419 recorded cases and 53 fatalities. The second wave of infections started in the village of Bomate on February 9, prompting health authorities to send samples to the National Institute for Biomedical Research in Kinshasa for further testing. Some of the samples tested positive for malaria, but the underlying cause of the outbreak remains unknown.

Concerns Over Animal-to-Human Transmission

The World Health Organization’s Africa office has noted that the first reported cases were linked to the consumption of a bat. The possibility of zoonotic transmission—where diseases jump from animals to humans—has long been a concern in regions where wild animals are commonly consumed. Reports indicate that outbreaks of such illnesses in Africa have increased by more than 60% over the past decade.

While scientists work to identify the cause of this outbreak, health officials are urging caution and increased surveillance to prevent further spread. Last year, a similar flu-like illness that caused multiple deaths in another part of Congo was later attributed to malaria.

Efforts to contain the current outbreak are ongoing, with experts emphasizing the need for further research to determine whether this is a previously unidentified virus or a new strain of an existing disease.