At least 30 people have died since early May in a displaced persons camp in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, with some confirmed Ebola cases raising fears that the virus may be spreading rapidly among vulnerable communities.
The deaths were reported in Kigonze camp in Bunia, the epicentre of Congo’s latest Ebola outbreak, where more than 15,000 people live in crowded conditions with poor sanitation.
Camp officials and aid workers said the number of deaths was far above normal levels. Kigonze usually records between one and three deaths a month, but 10 people were buried this week alone, according to camp president Dz’djo Ndrutsi Etienne.
“People didn’t just die like this before,” camp spokesperson Desire Grodya Bapi said.
The full scale of the outbreak remains unclear because many residents had until Thursday refused Ebola testing for both patients and the dead, camp officials and aid group Caritas said.
However, witnesses said those who died had symptoms associated with Ebola, including headaches, fever and vomiting. Health workers later took samples from five victims, with some returning positive results. Three aid sources also confirmed Saturday that test samples from some of this week’s victims were positive for Ebola, without specifying the number.
The outbreak was officially declared by Congolese authorities on May 15, although camp officials said deaths began earlier in the month.
Justin Zanamuzi, director of Catholic aid organisation Caritas, said his team saw several bodies covered in sheets on Wednesday, including children and a pregnant woman.
“Our team tried to persuade people to accept doctors to inspect the bodies. They completely refused,” Zanamuzi said.
Reuters-verified footage from Thursday showed health teams in protective suits disinfecting bodies and preparing small coffins near a crucifix as mourners cried.
The deaths have deepened concern that Ebola may be circulating undetected among eastern Congo’s more than 5 million displaced people, where crowded camps and weak sanitation systems make disease control extremely difficult.
Kigonze residents live in plastic tents packed less than a metre apart. Children walk barefoot through dirt alleyways, while large families share cramped shelters.
Camp resident Kato Lonu, 47, said he lost two children, including a six-month-old baby.
“These are conditions that no human being should have to live in,” he said. “If you look around, people are dying one after another.”
Aid workers said the spike in deaths exposes the impact of shrinking donor support for water, hygiene and sanitation services, known as WASH, which are critical to controlling Ebola because the virus spreads through bodily fluids, including human waste.
UN data shows funding for toilets and handwashing stations in Congo fell by more than half between 2024 and 2025 to about $38 million. This year’s $80 million appeal is only 21% funded.
Congo has hundreds of camps for people displaced by war, some holding as many as 100,000 residents. Ebola deaths have already been recorded in another camp in Ituri province, which accounts for more than 90% of nearly 900 confirmed cases.
In Kigonze, some toilets still carry USAID markings, reflecting previous U.S. support. But camp officials and aid sources said there are too few latrines and that they often overflow.
“The latrines fill up very quickly, and people have to empty them themselves, with their bare hands,” Grodya said.
Washington has been Congo’s largest backer of WASH services, providing more than $60 million in 2024, according to a summary shared by a former USAID official. But U.S.-funded projects have been cut back or dropped since last year.
The Trump administration has defended the cuts, saying it is focusing on “hyper-prioritised life-saving humanitarian assistance.” Washington has committed more than $375 million in direct Ebola funding.
The U.S. State Department did not immediately comment.
Reuters could not determine how much, if any, U.S. funding now reaches Kigonze camp.
Four aid groups — Mercy Corps, the Danish Refugee Council, CARE International and Oxfam — said their U.S.-funded WASH projects for displaced people in Ebola-affected provinces had been reduced or cancelled.
Mercy Corps said it built 82 taps and more than 400 public toilets serving over 125,000 displaced people in 2024. This year, because of funding cuts, fewer than 19,000 people are being served by six taps and no public toilets.