Mongbwalu: the mining town at the heart of Congo's Ebola outbreak

An eastern Congo gold town, Mongbwalu in Ituri, is believed to be the outbreak’s birthplace, with Ebola then spreading to Bunia and beyond; the Bundibugyo strain was confirmed on May 15 after genomic sequencing; as of June 20, Congo logged about 1,003 confirmed cases, including 220 in Mongbwalu, though aid workers say the true toll is higher; transmission has been fueled by poverty and a mobile mining workforce, while distrust of responders and delays in testing complicate containment.