Unknown disease kills 143 people in south-west DRC, local authorities say | Democratic Republic of the Congo

An unknown disease killed 143 people in a south-west province of Democratic Republic of the Congo in November, local authorities told Reuters.

Infected people had flu-like symptoms including high fever and severe headaches, Remy Saki, the deputy governor of Kwango province, and Apollinaire Yumba, the provincial minister of health, said on Monday.

A medical team has been sent to the Panzi health zone to collect samples and carry out an analysis to identify the disease.

The situation was extremely worrying as the number of infected people continued to rise, said Cephorien Manzanza, a civil society leader.

“Panzi is a rural health zone, so there is a problem with the supply of medicines,” Manzanza said.

Sick people died in their own homes for lack of treatment, Saki and Yumba said.

A local epidemiologist said women and children were the most seriously affected by the disease.

A World Health Organization spokesperson said on Tuesday the UN health agency had been alerted to the presence of the disease last week, and it was working alongside DRC’s public health ministry to make further investigations.