The U.S. Embassy in Kinshasa informs U.S. citizens of an outbreak of measles in the provinces of Haut Katanga, Haut Lomami, Tanganyika, and Lualaba that has reportedly caused the death of 315 people and infected at least 20,000. (Numbers reported by Reuters news organization.) The Center for Disease Control office in Kinshasa has not confirmed those numbers, but is tracking the situation. Measles is very common throughout the year in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), and throughout most provinces, but these four provinces are experiencing an unusually large spike currently. This is directly related to the lower rates of vaccinations in those provinces.
It is recommended that anyone traveling or residing in the DRC obtain the proper vaccinations. Further information about vaccinations recommended for the DRC can be found in the Country Specific Information for the Democratic Republic of the Congo and by contacting the Centers for Disease Control.
For further information:
- To obtain Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) travel notices, call the CDC at 1-800-CDC-INFO (1-800-232-4636) from within the United States, or 1-404-639-3534 from overseas, or visit the CDC website.
- See the State Department’s travel website for the Worldwide Caution, Travel Warnings, Travel Alerts, and Country Specific Information.
- Enroll in the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP) to receive security messages and make it easier to locate you in an emergency.
- Contact the U.S. Embassy in Kinshasa located at 310 Avenue des Aviateurs, at +243-081-225-5872 (Do not dial the zero when calling from abroad). The Consular Section of the Embassy may be reached at tel. +243-081-884-6859 or +243-081-884-4609, and is open Monday-Thursday, 7:30 a.m.-5:15 p.m. and Fridays from 7:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
- Call 1-888-407-4747 toll-free in the United States and Canada or 1-202-501-4444 from other countries from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time, Monday through Friday (except U.S. federal holidays).
- For after-hours emergencies, U.S. citizens should call 081-556-0151 and ask to speak with the duty officer.
