Mystery Illness Kills Over 50 in Northwestern Congo With Hours Between Symptoms and Death

An unknown illness has killed over 50 people in northwestern Congo, according to doctors on the ground and the World Health Organization (WHO) on Monday.

The interval between the onset of symptoms and death has been 48 hours in the majority of cases, and “that’s what’s really worrying,” Serge Ngalebato, medical director of Bikoro Hospital, a regional monitoring center, told The Associated Press.

The latest disease outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo began on Jan. 21, with 419 recorded cases, including 53 deaths.

According to the WHO’s Africa office, the first outbreak in the town of Boloko started after three children ate a bat and died within 48 hours, displaying hemorrhagic fever symptoms.

Concerns about diseases jumping from animals to humans remain high in regions where wild animals are commonly consumed. The WHO reported in 2022 that such outbreaks in Africa have surged by more than 60% in the past decade.

A second outbreak of the mystery disease began in the town of Bomate on Feb. 9, prompting health officials to send samples from 13 cases to the National Institute for Biomedical Research in Kinshasa for testing.

So far, all samples have tested negative for Ebola and other common hemorrhagic fevers like Marburg, though some tested positive for malaria.

Last year, a similar mystery flu-like illness that killed dozens in another part of Congo was later determined to be likely caused by malaria.