More than 130 dead as rare Ebola strain spreads

Added: 2026-05-23

[00:00:00]The World Health Organization has declared a new outbreak of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda to be an international public health emergency. Officials say they're concerned about the quick spread of the virus. A rarer species of the Ebola virus called Bundaboo is behind the outbreak. Standard tests often miss it and it's likely the virus has been spreading in this region for weeks under the radar. As NPR's Ping Huang reports, US health officials are working to evacuate exposed Americans.

[00:00:30]>> Dr. Satish Pilai is managing the Ebola response for the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

[00:00:36]>> There's one case of Ebola in an American who is exposed as part of their work in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The person developed symptoms over the weekend and tested positive late Sunday.

[00:00:48]Peli says they're being moved to Germany along with six other Americans that are considered high-risisk contacts for treatment and observation. Germany because their doctors have experience with Ebola patients and it's quicker to fly there. Ebola disease is rare but deadly. Health officials believe this outbreak started in late April. Ping Huang, NPR News. More than 130 people have been killed by the disease in this latest outbreak. Health officials are now tracking more than 500 suspected cases. I'm Corv Coleman, NPR News.