3,000 injuries, 900 deaths recorded in eastern DRC

Goma, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The World Health Organization said on Friday that the recent surge in violence in the Eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo has led to significant loss of life and trauma with over 3,082 injuries recorded in 31 health facilities in North Kivu alone.

According to a statement released on Friday, the organization noted that not just hospitals are overwhelmed but morgues with 843 people dying in health facilities in and around Goma since January 26.

With the alarming expansion of violence further south, they say, 65 injuries were reported from 3 hospitals in South Kivu announcing that the situation remains tense and volatile, with immense health needs.

According to reports, these numbers are expected to rise further as more injured people can reach health facilities and more dead bodies are gathered off the streets.

“Wound infections are a risk for those who have not been able to reach health care facilities quickly, and as health facilities are running out of supplies they need to clean and disinfect. The sight of bodies lying uncared for is distressing.

Though the bodies of people who have died from injury do not generally carry or spread disease, it is the right of the dead to be identified and receive proper burial, and important for the living to know their loved ones have received this care”, the statement reads in part.

Over 70 health facilities in North Kivu have been affected, with some destroyed and others struggling to restart operations. Some ambulances have also been damaged.

WHO reports that their supported health clinic in North Kivu was temporarily occupied by armed groups and health workers had to flee.

With the current situation, experts warn that the threat of infectious diseases has multiplied. Cholera, malaria, measles, meningitis, mpox and tuberculosis are among the infectious threats in the area. WHO figures show Ninety percent of the mpox patients (128 of 143) in isolation units in Goma had fled for safety, making it nearly impossible to provide them with care, and increasing the risk of spread.

In addition, the water supply in Goma was disrupted and has only partially resumed, leading people to use water from the lake, and heightening the risk of cholera spread. Close to 600 suspected cases of cholera and 14 deaths were reported from North Kivu between 1 and 27 January.

Goma was home to over 2 million people, including 700,000 people displaced by this crisis. These people have had to flee yet again, in search of safety. They are in temporary settlements, with their health and safety at risk.

A rapid assessment of 10 healthcare facilities in and around Goma showed a concerning rise in rape and other gender-based violence: there were 45 cases reported among the displaced, and 21 survivors of gang rape admitted to two hospitals.

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