As officials keep a close eye on hantavirus cases, another global health concern is drawing attention overseas: Ebola. There are reports of 10 confirmed cases and 336 suspected cases, including 88 deaths, in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), plus two confirmed cases, including one death, in Uganda.
On Sunday, the World Health Organization declared an Ebola outbreak in Africa a public health emergency of international concern — the agency’s highest level of global alert. The designation is designed to help countries coordinate efforts to contain the virus before it spreads further across borders.
Still, the WHO stressed the virus is not considered a pandemic-level threat like Covid-19, but added that countries sharing land borders with the DRC are at a high risk for further spread. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also urged calm, saying the risk to the U.S. remains low while encouraging travelers to take precautions if visiting affected areas.
There are, however, growing concerns about some Americans in the region who may have already been exposed. According to STAT, several people in the DRC are believed to have come into contact with suspected Ebola cases linked to the virus’s recent spread, and at least one person may have developed symptoms. The CDC says it is working with international partners to coordinate "the safe withdrawal [from the DRC and Uganda] of a small number of Americans who are directly affected by this outbreak.”
Here’s what to know about the virus, how it spreads, and the most common symptoms.
The latest Ebola outbreak
In its assessment, the WHO cited the growing number of deaths and infections linked to the outbreak in the DRC and Uganda as part of its rationale for declaring a global health emergency. While the true scale of the epidemic remains unclear, the agency warned that all signs point to “a potentially much larger outbreak than what is currently being detected and reported.”
Some public health experts say one of the most concerning aspects of the outbreak is how long it may have spread undetected. Jennifer Nuzzo, director of the Pandemic Center at Brown University School of Public Health, told The New York Times that these kinds of outbreaks are typically identified much earlier by health authorities or local reporting networks.
During a press briefing on Friday, World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the agency was first notified about suspected Ebola infections on May 5 and immediately dispatched a team to Ituri to investigate. But he explained that early testing efforts were complicated because field equipment could detect only the Zaire strain of Ebola — the only version of the virus with a licensed vaccine. Samples were later sent to the National Institute of Biomedical Research in Kinshasa, where several infections were ultimately confirmed on Thursday.
As health officials work to better understand the outbreak, international coordination efforts are also ramping up to help prevent further spread. Tedros said he plans to convene an emergency committee “as soon as possible” to discuss the global response.
What is Ebola?
Ebola is a rare but severe — and often deadly — disease caused by a group of viruses known as orthoebolaviruses. The current outbreak has been linked to the Bundibugyo strain, one of several known types of Ebola virus.
The disease causes a form of viral hemorrhagic fever that can damage blood vessels and, in severe cases, lead to organ failure. According to the World Health Organization, fatality rates in past outbreaks have ranged from roughly 25 percent to 90 percent, with an average death rate of about 50 percent.
Ebola is highly contagious and can be transmitted through direct contact with the bodily fluids of someone who is infected and already showing symptoms, including blood, vomit, saliva, sweat, urine, or semen. The virus can also spread through contaminated objects or by handling the body of someone who died from the disease.
That’s one reason Ebola outbreaks tend to remain more geographically contained, even though the illness itself can be far deadlier. Orthoebolaviruses were first identified in 1976 in what is now the Democratic Republic of the Congo and are found primarily in sub-Saharan Africa, where more than 35 Ebola outbreaks have been documented. The DRC alone has experienced at least 17 outbreaks as of May 2026.
But the largest Ebola epidemic on record occurred in West Africa between 2014 and 2016, infecting more than 28,600 people and spreading to several other countries, including Italy, Nigeria, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The outbreak drew international attention and ultimately helped spur the development of Ebola treatments and vaccines later approved by the Food and Drug Administration.
Still, while there are now two approved Ebola treatments, none are designed for the current Bundibugyo strain. There are also no Bundibugyo vaccines or therapeutics currently listed in ClinicalTrials.gov, the federal database of clinical studies.
What are the symptoms of Ebola?
Ebola often begins with symptoms that can seem fairly ordinary at first. The CDC refers to these as “dry” symptoms, which can include fever, severe headache, muscle and joint pain, weakness, fatigue, and a sore throat. Signs of the disease typically appear between two and 21 days after exposure to the virus.
As the illness progresses, some patients can develop more severe “wet” symptoms, including nausea, abdominal pain, diarrhea, loss of appetite, unexplained bleeding, and other gastrointestinal issues. Some people may also experience chest pain, shortness of breath, confusion, red eyes, skin rashes, hiccups, or seizures.
Since early Ebola symptoms can resemble more common infectious diseases — including the flu and malaria — the CDC says quickly identifying and isolating cases is critical to helping prevent further spread.
