DRC’s Bunia airport reopens after steep decline in number of suspected Ebola cases

Traffic has resumed at Bunia airport in DR Congo’s Ituri province, the epicenter of the country’s latest Ebola outbreak.

The move comes after the World Health Organization reported a decline in the number of suspected cases from 906 at the end of last week to 116.

Congo’s transport ministry said authorities monitoring the outbreak concluded that “conditions are now in place for a gradual and safe resumption of flights.”

Passengers welcomed the news as a sign of life returning to normal:

“To go and bury my eldest brother, it was a whole ordeal for us, as we’re not used to travelling by road with all the insecurity along the way,” said passenger Jenny Avuchi. “We had no choice but to wait a little until it reopened, and suddenly the airport has opened and we are really very happy and very pleased.”

“It was yet another burden and source of pressure for us: on one side there was the epidemic, and on the other the complete closure of the airport,” said another passenger who didn’t give his name. “This reopening is a relief and restores our confidence that the epidemic is being closely monitored, and it reassures us that we are safe, even at the airport.”

Authorities monitoring the outbreak say conditions are in place for the safe resumption of flights. But health and safety measures are being strictly enforced to prevent any risk of spreading the virus, says airline pilot Isaac Owuma:

“We have put health measures in place: we give a face mask to every passenger who boards, and there is also handwashing on boarding and disembarkation, as well as temperature checks.”

On Tuesday, official numbers stood at 321 confirmed cases and 48 deaths in Ituri province. Congolese authorities have launched a communication campaign to reassure the public that “the situation is under control.”