DR Congo: Pneumonic Plague Outbreak - Feb 2005

On 15 Feb 2005, WHO received reports of 61 deaths of pneumonic plague in Ituri district, Oriental province in the northern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo. Preliminary results from rapid diagnostic tests in the area confirmed pneumonic plague, and the cases had clinical features compatible with this disease.The cases occurred in workers in a diamond mine in Zobia where c. 7000 people worked. The mine was re-opened on 16 Dec 2004 and the first case occurred on 20 Dec. A team from Médecins sans Frontières (Belgium and Switzerland), Medair, WHO and Ministry of Health went to the area to assess the situation(WHO,18 Feb 2005)

Despite logistical problems due to dense forests in the area, the teams spent days assessing the situation in health facilities, looking for new cases and checking the situation in the mine, as well as the camp where the miners lived. They were able to organise contact tracing and provide the contacts with specific antibiotics. (IRIN, 04 Mar 2005)