Kenya officially registered its first Ebola case on Tuesday. The State Secretary of the Ministry of Health, Aden Duale, informed journalists that the affected individual is a Kenyan citizen who had resided in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) for the past seven years.
He felt unwell about a month ago and received treatment in several DRC hospitals before traveling by car to Kampala in Uganda, and subsequently flying to Nairobi. The patient, whose identity has not yet been established, arrived at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport on October 3 after a flight from Kampala on Jambojet 8523.
At the airport, he underwent standard public health screening, after which relatives and a friend took him to a Nairobi hospital. There, he was isolated and later tested positive for Ebola. According to Duale, the patient died on Monday around 11:30 PM while receiving supportive care.
Authorities have already identified 28 contacts, including healthcare workers and family members who assisted the patient. Additionally, 23 passengers and four crew members from the same flight are being tracked.
Duale urged the public to remain calm, assuring that all systems are prepared to mitigate the spread of the disease. He strongly recommended people to wash their hands frequently or use alcohol-based antiseptics, and to avoid close contact with sick individuals from countries where active Ebola transmission is observed.
This case comes against the backdrop of the DRC battling the largest Ebola outbreak in its history. Since the outbreak was declared in May, over 8,000 confirmed cases and 4,082 deaths have been recorded, with the disease spreading across several provinces.
The outbreak is caused by the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola, for which there is currently no approved vaccine or specific treatment. It was initially detected in the northeastern province of Ituri, DRC, and subsequently spread to other parts of the country.
The virus also reached Uganda, where authorities recorded 20 confirmed cases and two deaths. Fifteen of these cases were imported from the DRC, and five were linked to local transmission among contacts. Uganda declared the end of its outbreak on August 26 after completing the necessary period of enhanced surveillance without detecting further transmission.
The latest case in Kenya highlights the risk associated with cross-border movement, as the virus continues to circulate in eastern DRC. The World Health Organization previously assessed the risk of cross-border spread as high for countries bordering areas where the Bundibugyo virus has been found, citing population migration related to trade and other activities.
Earlier this year, Kenya strengthened its preparedness for an outbreak. In June, the country reinforced surveillance, laboratory capacity, rapid response teams, and isolation facilities, with Nairobi being classified as one of the very high-risk counties due to its role as an international transport hub.
Ebola is primarily transmitted through direct contact with the blood or other bodily fluids of an infected person, including after death. Symptoms can include fever, vomiting, and diarrhea, and in severe cases, hemorrhagic manifestations. Kenyan health services are conducting epidemiological investigations and monitoring to determine whether the imported case will lead to new infections.