A young man died at a treatment centre in Rwampara, near the city of Bunia in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. His relatives refused to believe the doctors when they said he had Ebola. On 21 May 2026, the situation became violent. Police fired warning shots and tear gas. Two tents burned down, and six patients escaped.
Four days earlier, the World Health Organization had declared this outbreak a Public Health Emergency of International Concern. The virus is Bundibugyo, a rare strain of Ebola. There is no vaccine and no approved treatment. This virus has killed between 25 and 50 percent of people it infected in previous outbreaks.
By late May, more than 900 suspected cases had been reported in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, with over 200 deaths. The epidemic started in Ituri Province in the east, a region that has experienced decades of armed conflict. It has now spread to other areas, including the cities of Goma and Butembo, and across the border into Uganda's capital, Kampala.
Mistrust of health authorities is a serious problem. In the same week as the Rwampara fire, another attack destroyed a treatment tent in Mongbwalu, a gold-mining town. Eighteen patients fled into the community. Healthcare workers in Mongbwalu have died, and Red Cross volunteers died in March after handling bodies.
One reason the outbreak went undetected was that early tests could only identify the Zaire strain of Ebola, not Bundibugyo. Bundibugyo was first identified in 2007. This is only the third known outbreak of this virus. The WHO says global risk is low, but regional risk is high. However, containment depends on trust, which remains difficult to build in this conflict-affected region.