Ten days after a cross-border traveler from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DR Congo) died from Ebola in Kenya’s capital Nairobi, East African health authorities have announced a second confirmed case of the deadly virus, in a development that has sparked targeted public health action while reassuring the general population. Kenya’s Ministry of Health confirmed the new patient is a 39-year-old man who is a close contact of the first victim. The man had already been placed in precautionary quarantine when he developed symptoms of Ebola on Tuesday, giving responders a head start in containing the potential spread. Ebola’s incubation period ranges between two and 21 days, meaning people exposed to the virus can remain asymptomatic and undetectable for up to three weeks after contact with an infected person. Health officials note that this early detection of the second case is a critical win for Kenya’s outbreak response: it has significantly boosted the patient’s odds of survival, while drastically reducing the risk that he could transmit the virus to other people. In an official statement, the ministry urged Kenyan residents to “stay calm but vigilant”, emphasizing that both confirmed cases are directly linked, with no evidence to suggest the virus has spread into the broader community. The first case, a 40-year-old Kenyan businessman, passed away on October 5, just a short time after he was admitted to a Nairobi hospital. He had traveled from DR Congo to Kenya via Uganda, and his infection was not detected at any border checkpoint before he entered the country. A relative picked him up from the airport and transported him directly to the hospital when he began showing signs of illness. In the weeks following the first patient’s death, contact tracers have worked around the clock to identify every person who may have been exposed to the virus. As of Tuesday, officials had located 113 of the 128 identified contacts, according to the Ministry of Health. Of those found, 108 are currently in monitored quarantine in Kenya, while tracing efforts continue for the remaining 15 people who have not yet been located. This confirmation of a second case in Kenya comes amid an ongoing, devastating Ebola outbreak in DR Congo that began in May of this year. Caused by the rare Bundibugyo strain of Ebola — a variant with no currently approved vaccine or specific antiviral treatment, though clinical trials for new countermeasures are ongoing — the outbreak has already claimed more than 4,000 lives in DR Congo, making it the second deadliest Ebola outbreak ever recorded. The Ebola virus itself is transmitted only through direct contact with bodily fluids of an infected person, such as blood or vomit, a key detail that public health officials have emphasized to reduce unnecessary public panic.