The Ebola epidemic in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo is worsening the vulnerability of people already affected by armed conflict and other forms of violence, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said on Tuesday.
The ICRC said the five hospitals it supports in North and South Kivu provinces recorded 303 casualties between May 15 and June 15, a 30 percent increase from the 233 reported between April 14 and May 14.
The DRC has reported more than 800 confirmed Ebola cases, including 196 deaths, since the outbreak caused by the Bundibugyo Ebola strain was declared on May 15, the Health Ministry said in the latest update.
The ICRC said that while the Ebola epidemic in the affected provinces demands heightened vigilance, there is a fear that it could be obscuring the continuing acute needs of people affected by armed conflict and other violence.
Moussa Badji, the ICRC’s medical coordinator in the DRC, said the health crisis resulting from Ebola has not reduced the number of conflict-related emergency cases, where surgical teams are placed under constant pressure with a steady stream of weapon-wounded patients.
In a sign of intensifying hostilities, hospitals in Bukavu, Uvira, and Fizi, in South Kivu, have admitted 170 casualties, according to the ICRC.
