An outbreak of Ebola disease caused by Bundibugyo virus in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda has prompted the World Health Organization to declare a public health emergency of international concern, the agency confirmed in its Disease Outbreak News on 29 May. The PHEIC — the highest level of alarm under the International Health Regulations — was determined on 17 May.

The numbers are moving fast. WHO’s 29 May bulletin counted 134 confirmed cases and 18 confirmed deaths across the two countries, a 14% case fatality rate among confirmed cases, with a much larger pool of suspected cases still under investigation. By the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control’s data cut on 1 June — a later, separate snapshot — the confirmed tally had reached 359 cases and 61 deaths: 344 cases and 60 deaths in the DRC, and 15 cases and one death in Uganda. The DRC’s Ituri province remains the epicentre.

One feature worries responders: WHO reported 16 confirmed infections among health and care workers, a marker of transmission within healthcare settings. There are no approved vaccines or specific treatments for Bundibugyo virus disease — the licensed Ebola vaccine and monoclonal antibody therapies target the Zaire species, not this one.

Europe tightens hospital defences

On 18 May the ECDC activated the EU Health Task Force, deploying an expert to Africa CDC headquarters to support coordination, alongside partners including DG ECHO and the Global Outbreak Alert and Response Network. Then, on 2 June, the agency issued rapid infection prevention and control advice for EU/EEA healthcare settings.

“Strict multi-level IPC measures are warranted for Ebola disease, including the use of high-level isolation units if possible.” — ECDC rapid advice, 2 June 2026

The advice says assessment of suspected cases should be conducted as soon as possible, “even prior to physical contact with symptomatic individuals.” It frames the span “from the time of symptom onset through hospitalisation” as the window in which transmission must be prevented. ECDC’s message to the public is measured: it assesses the likelihood of infection for people living in the EU/EEA as “very low.”

That mirrors WHO’s own gradient — risk judged very high at the national level in the DRC, high regionally, and low globally. The story now hinges on whether case-finding and isolation can outpace a virus that, unlike its better-known cousin, still has no vaccine and no drug.