Update: This '25 DRC Ebola Outbreak Is Now Flashing A ~66% Fatality Rate. Efforts At Slowing The Outbreak Are Seeing Only Moderate Effectiveness.

Once again -- had USAID been on the ground, uninterrupted -- since the beginning of 2025 (start of Tangerine 2.0 -- as it has been back before Mr. Obama, before both Bushes, and even before Mr. Clinton -- during Reagan), it is highly likely that fewer than five people would be dead -- and the outbreak already arrested.

Do read all of it, at the below link -- but this was written by Gloabl BioDefense last week (while I was off-grid). The situation in Democratic Republic Congo as of the start of October, then:

. . .As of Sept. 28, 2025, there are 64 people with confirmed or probable Ebola, which includes 42 deaths, a case-fatality rate (CFR) approaching 66%. At least five healthcare workers were infected, underscoring gaps in infection prevention and control (IPC).

The index case -- a 34-year-old pregnant woman -- presented with acute haemorrhagic syndrome on August 20 and succumbed within five days, highlighting delays in case recognition and limited early diagnostic capacity.

Geographic risk mapping shows significant vulnerability for inter-provincial and cross-border dissemination, as Kasai shares borders with seven provinces and Angola. Travel corridors -- particularly the Tshikapa-Kinshasa route -- pose potential pathways for seeding new transmission foci if response measures falter. . . .

[And, as to factors USAID used to help alleviate,] over 40% of children under five in Kasai are stunted, with over 2,000 currently under treatment for acute malnutrition. These conditions heighten morbidity and mortality risks and may exacerbate health-seeking delays.

Severe logistical bottlenecks continue to impede containment: travel between Bulape and Mweka -- only 27 km (~17 miles) apart -- can take around 12 hours due to poor road infrastructure. Such delays affect the timely delivery of PPE, diagnostic supplies, and deployment of rapid response teams. Concurrent seasonal flooding further threatens access to high-risk communities.

Educational disruption has affected more than 44,000 school-aged children in the affected zones. Psychosocial stress and stigma remain significant, echoing patterns seen in prior outbreaks and increasing the burden on frontline health workers. . . .

We will not fall silent. This is a human tragedy, unfolding. And, a largely avoidable one. The last Ebola outbreak ended with only four deaths, in DRC in 2022. We are at ten times that, in two months. Damn.

नमस्ते