Health officials confirmed a new Ebola case in the Democratic Republic of Congo April 10, just three days before the country was poised to officially declare an end to the outbreak, reports STAT.
Congo had gone 52 days without any new Ebola diagnoses. Health officials can officially declare the outbreak over when no infections occur for 42 days after the last reported case tests negative. April 13 would've marked this milestone for the country.
The latest victim, a 26-year-old man in the city of Beni, died from the infection. Health officials are investigating how the man contracted the virus and said the case likely stems from an undetected transmission chain.
Ebola has sickened at least 3,400 people and killed more than 2,200 since the outbreak began in August 2018, making it the second largest Ebola outbreak in history.