Health officials in the Democratic Republic of Congo are investigating a suspected case of Ebola in the eastern province of North Kivu.
The suspected case of the infectious disease has been reported a month after the health ministry declared the end of another outbreak in the northwest of the country.
Authorities say a 46-year-old woman in the eastern town of Beni was admitted to a hospital earlier this month and treated for other ailments. She later developed symptoms of Ebola and died on August 15th.
Tests conducted in a laboratory in Beni confirmed she had Ebola.
The DRC’s National Institute of Biomedical Research is carrying out further tests to determine whether the patient contracted the viral disease.
The World Health Organisation says it has sent teams to Beni territory to help the government identify people who came into contact with the patient.
Outbreaks of Ebola are common in the DRC. The country has recorded 14 outbreaks since 1976.
Scientists say the disease is transmitted to humans through contact with infected wild animals like fruit bats and monkeys.
The DRC has a large forested area making it susceptible to Ebola outbreaks.
The country battled an outbreak between 2018 and 2020 that claimed more than 2000 lives. -Reporting by SABC News Chris Ocamringa in Kinshasa.
