American doctor working in Congo tests positive for Ebola, CDC and aid group say

An American doctor working with a medical missionary organization in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has tested positive for Ebola, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the missionary group said Monday. 

The individual was being taken to Germany for treatment, the CDC said. 

There are more than 250 suspected cases and 80 suspected deaths so far in the Ebola outbreak in the Congo and neighboring Uganda, the World Health Organization said. The WHO declared the outbreak a global health emergency on Sunday.

The missionary group Serge said Dr. Peter Stafford tested positive for the Bundibugyo ebolavirus variant after being exposed while treating patients at Nyankunde Hospital, in the Congo city of Bunia, where he has served since 2023. His wife, who is also a doctor with the aid group, and another physician remain asymptomatic, the group said.

“All three medical professionals have strictly adhered to established quarantine protocols since the potential exposure,” Serge said in a statement on its website.

Sources previously told CBS News that at least six Americans have been exposed in the outbreak.

This is a breaking news story. It will be updated.