Kenya's Ministry of Health confirmed on 16 October the country's third Ebola case: a 65-year-old woman, a close relative of the first patient, who died on the night of 5 October. She had been in quarantine since 6 October and was isolated after developing a fever, a sore throat and general body weakness.
The infection was confirmed by tests at the National Virology Reference Laboratory and the Kenya Medical Research Institute (KEMRI). The patient was moved to an infectious disease unit, where she is receiving supportive care.
This is the first time Ebola has circulated in Kenya. The first case, a Kenyan man who had travelled home from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, died on 5 October. The second, a 39-year-old man, was confirmed on 14 October and is stable and responding well to treatment, according to the ministry. The country's tally therefore stands at three cases and one death.
127 of 130 contacts isolated
Health teams identified 130 contacts of the first patient — family, friends, health workers and fellow passengers on the same flight. As of 16 October, 127 of them (97.7%) were in quarantine, with daily temperature and symptom checks for 21 days. The remaining three were still being located.
The ministry says the tracing rate exceeds the 85% global benchmark and that "there is no evidence of community transmission of the disease."
The detail that organises the case is a different one: both of the more recent cases are close relatives of the first and were already in quarantine when they fell ill. Detection did not happen at an emergency-room door but in the daily monitoring of people already being followed — the difference between an outbreak that is tracked and one that has been lost sight of.
"Being quarantined means the family and the general public are better protected from exposure to the virus," said Neema Rusibamayila Kimambo, the World Health Organization (WHO) representative in Kenya. "This is the response working as designed," said Patrick Amoth, Director General for Health at the ministry, who added: "Early reporting saves lives."
Bundibugyo, with no licensed vaccine
The species circulating is Bundibugyo, one of those that cause disease in humans. There is no licensed vaccine and no specific treatment for it — trials are under way in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where the current outbreak was declared in May 2026. Care is supportive: fluids and symptom treatment in designated units.
The WHO has handed Kenya supplies worth about US$70,000, including personal protective equipment, Ebola testing kits and infrared thermometers, and has supported the training of nearly 5,000 health workers. Kenya began preparing in May, when the outbreak was declared in its neighbour.
No border closures
The WHO advises against closing borders or restricting trade, and the Kenyan ministry says the country remains open, with no restrictions on travel, trade or public gatherings.
The government distributed equipment to 28 high-risk counties and to points of entry, and now requires travellers from ten high-risk countries to complete a digital surveillance form and show its QR code on arrival. From the start of the outbreak in May to 15 October, 685,027 people had been screened, according to the ministry. A toll-free line, 719, is available to the public.
With information from the World Health Organization (Regional Office for Africa) and Nairobi News.
