WHO chief urges safe burials in visit to heart of Ebola outbreak

T he World Health Organisation chief travelled on Saturday to the Congolese province hardest hit by an Ebola outbreak, urging residents to seek treatment and practice safe burials as officials scramble to contain the fatal disease.



The outbreak - the 17th in Democratic Republic of Congo and the third-largest since Ebola was discovered half a century ago - is outpacing the global response, something WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus acknowledged this week before travelling to Kinshasa on Thursday.



His visit came as Brazil said on Saturday it was investigating a suspected Ebola case in Sao Paulo state involving a man who recently visited Congo. Authorities said the patient was in isolation at a specialist hospital.



After meeting Prime Minister Judith Suminwa Tuluka on Friday, Tedros flew on Saturday to Bunia, capital of Ituri province, where the first cases were confirmed earlier this month.



At a press conference alongside Congo's health minister, Tedros said the rare Bundibugyo strain has no approved vaccines or treatments, making early palliative care - including isolation, rehydration and pain management - critical.