Exploring Kenya's 'World's Deadliest Cave': Uncovering Its Mysteries

Africa's very own!

The world endured a pandemic that brought with it unprecedented levels of lockdowns and other curbs but scientists have found a cave in Africa that they think could be an incubator for zoonotic diseases

The mysterious cave

Kitum Cave is located on the slopes of Mount Elgon, a dormant volcano on the border between Kenya and Uganda. It gained notoriety due to its association with the Marburg, a highly infectious and potentially deadly virus similar to Ebola

Bats at bay

The virus is believed to have been transmitted to humans from infected bats that inhabit the cave. Researchers have hypothesised that the body fluids or excretions of bats may have contained the virus and infected those who ventured into the cave

The discovery

The outbreak occurred in 1980 when several individuals, including a French engineer, became infected after visiting the cave.

Danish connection

In 1987, a Danish schoolboy explored the same cave during a family vacation, and he died of a related hemorrhagic virus, now called Ravn virus

WHO and people

Last year, WHO teams were deployed across Africa to halt another outbreak of Marburg, which has since been discovered in other caves across the continent.

More on the Virus

Doctors in the US are also being warned to be on the lookout for imported cases, sparking fears that the virus may be spreading under the radar. Marburg virus has been touted as a next big pandemic threat, with the WHO describing it as epidemic prone