The True Story: Kamituga, the Mining Town Where a New Strain Began

Kamituga is a gold-mining town in South Kivu province in the east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Mine workers move in and out constantly, and people from many areas mix there. In September 2023, the town began seeing mpox cases that were later identified as a new strain, clade Ib. Between 28 September 2023 and 3 March 2024, South Kivu recorded about 229 laboratory-confirmed cases. The virus then travelled along trade routes and with people on the move until it reached Goma, a city surrounded by camps holding hundreds of thousands of people displaced by conflict and living in crowded conditions. By August 2024, the DRC had reported more than 14,000 cases that year (including suspected cases) and 511 deaths. Africa CDC declared a continental emergency on 13 August 2024, and the World Health Organization declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concern the next day.

Why Displacement Camps Let the Virus Spread So Easily

In displacement camps, many families live in tents or temporary shelters side by side. They share toilets, water points and washing areas. Clean water and soap are limited, and many people sleep on mats or blankets passed from person to person.

• Crowding means close contact all the time
• Many children live and play together
• Blankets and mats are shared and hard to wash
• Shared toilets are used by hundreds of people a day
• Isolating patients is difficult because there is no spare space

WHO states that mpox spreads through close contact and through contaminated items such as bedding and clothing, conditions found in every crowded shelter.

Why This Matters in Thailand

Thailand does not have camps like those around Goma, but it opens temporary shelters every year for floods, landslides and wildfires, and there are shelter areas along the borders. These shelters are often in schools, temples, halls and local government buildings, and they share the same features: many people sleeping, eating and using toilets together in a limited space. When the water recedes and evacuees go home, those buildings must return to being classrooms, temple halls or meeting halls. The question is: was the building disinfected before it went back into use?

What Shelters Often Get Wrong

1. No symptom screening point, so people with fever or rash sleep alongside everyone else from day one
2. Donated blankets are passed around without washing between users
3. Toilets are cleaned once a day even though hundreds of people use them
4. No isolation area, so there is no plan for where to move someone who falls ill
5. Closing without disinfection, so the building goes straight back to being a school after evacuees leave

An Infection-Prevention Plan for Shelters

1. Set up screening at the entrance: ask about fever, rash and travel history
2. Set aside an isolation area for people with suspected infectious illness, with a separate toilet if possible
3. Give each person their own blanket and mat, and wash them in hot water before passing them on
4. Clean and disinfect toilets several times a day, especially taps, handles and toilet bowls
5. Set up handwashing points at the entrance, the canteen and outside the toilets
6. Coordinate with the hospital and district health office, and call the 1422 hotline when a suspected case appears
7. Fog the whole building before closing the shelter so it can safely return to its normal use

Why ULV Fogging Suits Large Buildings

The World Health Disinfection disinfection service uses ULV fogging machines that turn the disinfectant into a fine mist. It covers meeting halls, classrooms and large pavilions quickly, including corners, walls and surfaces that hand wiping cannot fully reach.

• Wide-area coverage, suited to halls and multipurpose buildings
• Quick return to use, typically about 30 minutes after fogging
• Tax invoice with 3% withholding tax for government agencies, local authorities and foundations
• Report and photos for reporting to supervisors
• More than 5 years of experience in hospitals, government agencies and public buildings

The Disinfectant We Use: Chemgene HLD4H

The team uses Chemgene HLD4H. According to WHD's product page, it meets the EN 14476 standard for virucidal activity, is used in NHS hospitals in England, and is endorsed by Mahidol University. We do not claim that Chemgene has been tested against mpox specifically. But mpox is an enveloped virus, which suitable disinfectants can inactivate when used correctly and with the full contact time. Agencies can also stock the disinfectant so volunteer teams can wipe toilets and high-touch points while the shelter is open.

10 Reasons Agencies Should Have a Shelter Disinfection Plan

1. Shelters are crowded in ways similar to the camps where mpox spread
2. It also prevents other infections, such as respiratory and skin diseases
3. It protects children, older people and people with health conditions
4. It protects staff and volunteers
5. Buildings can return to use as schools or temples with confidence
6. It reduces rumours and community worry
7. It provides documents for budget claims and reports
8. It uses a standards-tested disinfectant instead of guesswork bleach mixtures
9. The team has full protective equipment
10. You can prepare before each year's flood season

Before and After

What a Client Said

"After the floods we had to reopen the hall for students. Once a team came to fog it and gave us a report, the parents stopped worrying." An officer at a local government organisation that used World Health Disinfection

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: How does mpox in Congo relate to Thailand? A: Thailand reported an imported clade Ib case in 2024, according to the Department of Disease Control, and the lessons about crowding apply to every shelter. Q: When should a shelter be disinfected? A: When a suspected infectious case appears, and before the shelter closes so the building can return to its normal use. Q: Does Chemgene HLD4H kill mpox? A: It is not claimed to be tested against mpox specifically, but it meets EN 14476 for viruses, and mpox is an enveloped virus. Q: Can government agencies request a quotation? A: Yes, with a tax invoice and 3% withholding tax. Call 065-556-6294 or LINE @whd268.

Related Links

• Disinfection service for public buildings and government agencies
• Chemgene HLD4H disinfectant and price
• WHO mpox fact sheet

Prevent It with a Disinfection Service and Chemgene HLD4H

The true story from Congo shows that crowding can carry a virus from a small town to camps holding hundreds of thousands of people. Every shelter should have an infection-prevention plan from the day it opens to the day it closes. Prevent it with the World Health Disinfection disinfection service, which covers large buildings, and Chemgene HLD4H disinfectant for daily care of toilets and high-touch points.

Call 065-556-6294 | LINE: @whd268