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Historical · 1976

1976 Zaire (now DRC) Ebola outbreak (EBOV)

Yambuku. Reported 318 cases and 280 deaths, apparent CFR 88.1%. Strain: Zaire virus.

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At a glance

Years
1976
Countries
Zaire (now DRC)
Locations
Yambuku
Strain
Zaire virus (EBOV)
Reported cases
318
Reported deaths
280
Apparent CFR
88.1%
Why this outbreak matters
Index outbreak. Reused needles in a mission hospital amplified spread. Named for the Ebola River near Yambuku.

Location

Centroid placed at the most commonly reported town or health zone for this outbreak. See the full outbreak map for every recorded event since 1976.

Yambuku

2.835°, 22.218°

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Other Zaire virus outbreaks on record

Year Location Cases Deaths CFR
1994-1995 Gabon · Makokou - gold-mining camps 52 31 59.6%
1995 Zaire (now DRC) · Kikwit 315 254 80.6%
1996-1997 Gabon · Mayibout 2, Booué, Libreville 91 66 72.5%
2001-2003 Gabon, Republic of the Congo · Border regions - Mbomo, Kelle 302 254 84.1%
2005 Republic of the Congo · Etoumbi 12 10 83.3%
2007 DRC · Luebo, Mweka - Kasaï-Occidental 264 187 70.8%
2008-2009 DRC · Mweka, Luebo 32 14 43.8%
2013-2016 Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Nigeria, Mali, Senegal · Multiple - first cross-border ebolavirus epidemic 28,616 11,310 39.5%
2014 DRC · Équateur Province 66 49 74.2%
2018 DRC · Bikoro, Mbandaka - Équateur Province 54 33 61.1%
2018-2020 DRC, Uganda · North Kivu, Ituri, South Kivu - armed-conflict zones 3,470 2,280 65.7%
2020 DRC · Équateur Province 130 55 42.3%
2021 DRC · Butembo, North Kivu 12 6 50.0%
2021 Guinea · N’Zérékoré Region 23 12 52.2%
2021 DRC · North Kivu 11 9 81.8%
2025 DRC · Kasaï Province 81 28 34.6%

Source

https://www.cdc.gov/ebola/outbreaks/index.html

Cross-checked against our source ledger. Numbers may revise as primary documents are re-verified.