Four New Cases Detected in Quarantine

Kenya's Ministry of Health announced four new cases of Ebola virus disease (Bundibugyo) on Saturday (17/10/2026). With these additions, the total number of confirmed cases in Kenya has risen to seven, including one death — all of them the first Ebola cases ever recorded in the country.

Three of the four new patients are healthcare workers who treated the first patient on October 3 and 4: two men aged 29 and 35 and a woman aged 32. The fourth patient is a male relative of the first patient who died, who had been in quarantine since October 6.

The four patients developed fever while still in quarantine, were immediately isolated, and laboratory test results confirmed they were infected with the Ebola virus. Kenya's Ministry of Health stated that the second and third patients are in stable condition and responding well to treatment.

Tracking 128 of 130 Close Contacts

Kenya's Ministry of Health said the four new cases were detected within a contact network already under monitoring — a positive sign that contact tracing is working effectively. Of 130 identified close contacts, 128 people (98.5 percent) have been traced and placed in quarantine, while the remaining two are still being sought. Authorities are also monitoring four relatives who cared for the first patient during hospitalization.

Despite the first local transmission at a health facility, the Ministry of Health emphasized there is no evidence of community transmission and the risk to the general public remains low. Kenya has not imposed restrictions on travel, trade, or public gatherings. The first case itself was a man who was ill in the Democratic Republic of the Congo for about a month, then traveled overland to Uganda before flying to Nairobi on October 3 and dying two days later.