KINSHASA, June 11 (Xinhua) -- The number of confirmed Ebola cases in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has risen to 676, including 136 deaths, as health authorities warned of continued community transmission and the risk of a sudden geographic expansion of the outbreak.
According to the latest situation report released on Thursday by the DRC's health authorities, 41 new confirmed cases, including nine deaths, were reported on Wednesday in the provinces of Ituri and North Kivu.
The outbreak, caused by the Bundibugyo strain of the Ebola virus, has so far affected 29 health zones across three eastern provinces: Ituri, North Kivu and South Kivu.
The latest official assessment said confirmed cases have been increasing from week to week, indicating continued community transmission. It warned that a sudden geographic expansion of the outbreak is feared if public health measures are not implemented quickly.
Health authorities also said 5,768 contacts were under follow-up across the three affected provinces, with a follow-up rate of 71.8 percent. The report listed weak contact tracing as one of the main challenges, saying the current rate remains below the 95-percent target and could compromise efforts to interrupt transmission chains.
Two Ebola patients in Bunia, the capital of Ituri Province, were declared recovered, bringing the cumulative number of recoveries to 32, the report said.
The current Ebola outbreak in the DRC, the country's 17th since the disease was first identified in 1976, was officially declared on May 15. The affected provinces, with a combined population of nearly 15 million, are marked by large-scale internal displacement and cross-border population movements toward neighboring countries, according to the report.
