- WHO director general Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus issued a statement after Kenya confirmed its second Ebola case on October 14
- The new patient, a 39-year-old man, is a close family member of Kenya's first Ebola case and was already in quarantine when he fell ill
- Kenya's Ministry of Health has listed 128 contacts of the first case and continues tracing efforts at the national and international level
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The World Health Organisation (WHO) has described Kenya's confirmation of a second Ebola case as evidence that the country's disease surveillance and contact tracing systems are functioning effectively.
WHO director general, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, made the remarks on Wednesday, October 14, following an announcement by Kenya's Ministry of Health.
The new patient is a 39-year-old man and a close family member of the country's first Ebola case.
He was already under quarantine and being monitored daily when he developed fever, fatigue and joint pains on October 13.
The quarantine team promptly isolated him and collected a specimen, which returned positive results at both the National Virology Reference Laboratory and the KEMRI-CDC laboratory.
"@MOH_Kenya identified a second case of #Ebola caused by Bundibugyo virus, a close contact of the first patient, who has already been in quarantine. This shows that surveillance and contact tracing efforts are working. He has been receiving supportive clinical care since the onset of the symptoms," Tedros wrote.
Kenya's Containment Response
Because the patient was identified while already in quarantine, the Ministry of Health said his illness was caught early, improving his prospects for recovery and reducing the risk of onward transmission.
He has since been transferred to a designated treatment centre, where trained medical teams are managing his care.
The ministry confirmed both cases are directly linked and that there is no evidence of the virus circulating in the wider community.
Contact tracing remains active. As of October 13, authorities had listed 128 contacts of the first case and located 113 of them.
Of those, 108 are under quarantine in Kenya, subject to daily clinical and temperature checks for 21 days from their last possible exposure.
Five contacts have been identified outside Kenya, and health authorities in the respective countries have been alerted under the International Health Regulations (2005). Tracing of the remaining 15 contacts is ongoing.
Teams are also assessing all individuals who came into contact with the second patient after his symptoms began, including quarantine staff and health workers.
Kenya's first Ebola patient was a Kenyan citizen who contracted the disease while living in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), travelled through Uganda, and flew into Nairobi on October 3.
He died on October 5, making Kenya the fourth country to report a case in the current outbreak, which began in the DRC in May 2026.
WHO subsequently declared the outbreak a public health emergency of international concern. By October 4, the DRC had recorded 8,603 confirmed cases and 4,148 deaths.
Kenya has maintained a heightened Ebola alert since May and has trained 4,971 health workers at national and sub-national levels.
The response operates under the Public Health (Declaration of Formidable Epidemic Disease) Order, 2026 and the Public Health (Ebola Disease) Rules, 2026, through a single national command.
Ministry Urges Calm, Offers Guidance
Ministry of Health Director General Dr Patrick Amoth appealed to Kenyans to remain calm but vigilant.
He confirmed that Kenya has no restrictions on travel, trade or public gatherings.
Ebola spreads through direct contact with the blood or body fluids of an infected or deceased person, not through the air.
Anyone experiencing fever, unusual tiredness, muscle or joint pains, vomiting, diarrhoea or unexplained bleeding is advised to seek care immediately at the nearest health facility.
The ministry asked the public to rely solely on official updates and to call the toll-free line 719 for verified information.
Source: TUKO.co.ke