Kenya launches Ebola contact tracing after first imported case

NAIROBI, Kenya Oct 6 – The Ministry of Health is racing to trace dozens of people who may have come into contact with Kenya’s first confirmed Ebola patient after the Kenyan died while receiving treatment at Nairobi Hospital.

Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale said 28 contacts had already been identified, including family members and healthcare workers who attended to the patient.

The ministry is also pursuing 23 passengers and four crew members who were on the same flight as the deceased, in a race to determine whether the virus was transmitted to anyone during his journey from the Democratic Republic of Congo through Uganda to Nairobi.

“So far we have listed 28 contacts of the deceased including family members and health workers who attended to the deceased. We are also pursuing a further 23 passengers and four crew members who were on the same flight with the deceased,” Duale said.

He added that arrangements were underway to quarantine people considered to have been at risk of exposure.

“Arrangements for quarantine of those at risk to protect the public is ongoing,” the CS said.

The development has placed Kenya’s disease surveillance and contact-tracing systems under their most serious test since the government began preparing for the regional Ebola threat.

The patient, a Kenyan citizen who had lived in the DRC for seven years, fell ill about a month ago and received treatment at several hospitals in the country before beginning his journey back to Kenya.

He travelled by road from the DRC to Kampala, Uganda, where he boarded Jambojet flight JM8523 to Nairobi.

The flight landed at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport at 1.10pm on Saturday, October 3, carrying the patient alongside other passengers and crew.

Duale said the patient underwent routine public health screening at the airport before proceeding through immigration.

He was then collected by a relative and a friend and transported directly from JKIA to Nairobi Hospital in a Toyota Fielder, registration KDG 699Z.

At the hospital, doctors quickly isolated him in a separate room in the accident and emergency department before transferring him to the East Wing Isolation Facility.

The patient presented with fever, chills, severe fatigue and weakness, muscle pain, painful swallowing, sore throat and bleeding under the skin at injection sites.

His symptoms, combined with his travel history, prompted doctors to suspect viral haemorrhagic fever.

A sample was subsequently tested at the National Virology Reference Laboratory and the KEMRI laboratory, with both laboratories confirming Ebola Bundibugyo virus disease.

“The patient was given supportive treatment but regrettably passed on last night,” Duale said.

He conveyed the government’s condolences to the family and said preparations for the burial were underway.

“Arrangements for safe and dignified burial of the deceased are ongoing, and the burial is planned for later today in line with the Ebola safe and dignified burial protocols,” he said.

Race to locate passengers

The identification of the passengers and crew who travelled with the deceased has emerged as one of the most urgent tasks facing health officials.

The ministry must establish their whereabouts, assess their level of exposure and monitor them for possible symptoms.

The exercise is particularly important because the patient travelled through two countries before reaching Nairobi, potentially creating multiple points at which contact could have occurred.

Health officials will also have to reconstruct the patient’s movements after his arrival at JKIA, including his interaction with the relative and friend who transported him to hospital.

The ministry’s contact-tracing operation could therefore expand beyond the 28 people already identified.

Kenya had been on alert

The confirmation comes after months of heightened surveillance as Ebola spread in the DRC and Uganda.

Duale said Kenya had maintained a high level of alert since the regional outbreak began.

“I wish to reiterate that we have continued to maintain a high level of alert for Ebola since the outbreak began in May 2026,” he said.

The scale of the surveillance operation can be seen in the number of travellers screened at the country’s points of entry.

“As of 6th October 2026, we have screened 652,584 travellers,” Duale said.

The ministry has also tested 267 samples in five laboratories — the National Virology Reference Laboratory, KEMRI Nairobi, KEMRI Kisumu and two mobile laboratories stationed at the Busia and Lwakhakha border points.

“Only one test has turned positive,” Duale said.

The government says it has also trained 4,971 health workers at national and county levels on Ebola prevention and management.

The development has nevertheless exposed the continued vulnerability posed by cross-border movement, particularly given the patient’s journey through Uganda, which has recently battled its own Ebola outbreak.

Public urged not to panic

Despite the confirmation and subsequent death, Duale urged Kenyans to remain calm, saying the government had activated the necessary response mechanisms.

“I wish to reassure the public not to panic, as all systems are in place to mitigate the spread of the disease,” he said.

He urged Kenyans to wash their hands frequently or use alcohol-based hand rubs and avoid close contact with people who are sick and have travelled from countries experiencing active Ebola transmission.

Members of the public who develop symptoms have been advised to seek medical attention at recognised health facilities, while people who know of anyone who is unwell have been urged to report them to the nearest health facility.

Health workers have also been placed on heightened alert.

“Health workers are advised to be extra vigilant and maintain the highest infection prevention and control measures regardless of the condition being treated,” Duale said.

The government has notified the World Health Organisation of the confirmed case in accordance with the International Health Regulations.