Kenya Confirms Third Ebola Case in Quarantined Contact
Kenya has confirmed a third case of Bundibugyo virus disease, a strain of Ebola, health authorities reported on October 16, 2026. The patient is a 65-year-old woman, according to Kenya's Health Ministry. Al Jazeera
The ministry described her as a primary contact and close relative of the first two confirmed patients. She has been in quarantine, kept apart from others for observation, since October 6. She developed fever, sore throat and malaise, was then placed in isolation and tested positive for Ebola. Officials said the case was diagnosed early and she is receiving supportive care to manage her symptoms.
The ministry said there was no community spread and that the risk to the Kenyan public remained low. Health workers listed 130 contacts, and 127 of them had been traced and were in quarantine. The follow-up keeps people with known exposure under monitoring and separated from the wider community during the observation period.
The outbreak traces back to an imported infection. The first patient was a Kenyan man who had been ill in the Democratic Republic of Congo, travelled by road to Uganda and flew to Nairobi on October 3. He died on October 5. The World Health Organization said it was informed of that laboratory-confirmed case on October 5, with Kenya's formal notification under the International Health Regulations of 2005, the international rules for reporting such cases, recorded on October 6. World Health Organization WHO Regional Office for Africa
The Bundibugyo strain, the type of Ebola involved in these cases, has no licensed vaccine. WHO said it is supporting Kenya's control efforts. WHO Regional Office for Africa
