17/10/2026
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17/10/2026
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NAIROBI, Oct 17 : Kenya has confirmed four new cases of Ebola, including three health workers who treated the country’s first patient, bringing the total number of confirmed infections to seven, including one death, the Ministry of Health announced Saturday.
The new infections involve two male health workers aged 29 and 35 and a 32-year-old female health worker who attended to the first patient in the hospital between October 3 and 4. The fourth case involves a male relative of the deceased patient who had been in quarantine since October 6.
Health Director General Patrick Amoth said all four patients developed fever while under quarantine and were immediately isolated. Laboratory tests confirmed they had contracted Bundibugyo virus disease, a form of Ebola.
The cases were confirmed by the National Virology Reference Laboratory and the Kenya Medical Research Institute.
All four patients are receiving supportive care from trained health workers. The ministry said two of the patients were stable and responding well to treatment.
128 contacts traced and quarantined
Health authorities said the identification of the four new infections among people already in quarantine had helped reduce the risk of further transmission.
Of the 130 contacts identified in connection with the initial case, 128, or 98.5%, had been traced and placed under quarantine. Efforts were continuing to locate the remaining two.
Amoth said there was no evidence of community transmission and maintained that the risk to the general public remained low.
The ministry is also monitoring four relatives who cared for the first patient during his hospital stay.
Despite the additional cases, Kenya has not imposed restrictions on travel, trade or public gatherings. Authorities say the country remains open for business.
First patient travelled from Congo via Uganda
Kenya’s first confirmed patient had been living in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) before travelling through Uganda and arriving in Nairobi on October 3. He died on October 5.
The case has raised concerns about the potential spread of Ebola across East Africa, particularly because of cross-border travel between Kenya, Uganda and the DRC.
The DRC is grappling with a major Ebola epidemic caused by the Bundibugyo strain. According to figures reported by Reuters on October 13, the country had recorded more than 9,000 confirmed infections and 4,381 deaths, making it the second-largest Ebola outbreak on record.
The Bundibugyo strain has no approved vaccine or specific treatment, making early detection, isolation, supportive care and contact tracing central to efforts to contain its spread.
Kenyan health authorities are continuing surveillance, quarantine and contact-tracing operations to prevent further infections.
