a palace for future visits of King Leopold II of the Belgians. In 1886, at the beginning of colonial rule, the Belgians changed the city's name to "Coquilhatville" naming it after Camille-Aimé Coquilhat. In 1938, work began on a bridge over the Congo River connecting Coquilhatville with the French Congo (now the Republic of Congo). Work was abandoned on the outbreak of the Second World War, and only the foundations of the bridge pillars remain. In the 1930s, the Government of the Belgian Congo began several projects, including factories and a new city hall. The city hall was completed in 1947, just after the end of the Second World War. At that time, with a height of , it was the tallest building in the Belgian Congo. A statue of Leopold II was installed on its roof. The city hall was destroyed by a fire in 1963. After the Belgian Congo gained its independence as the Republic of the Congo, the new government changed the name of this city in 1966 to "Mbandaka" to honour a prominent local leader. Massacre of Hutus Near the end of the First Congo War in the late 20th century, hundreds of people (mainly Hutu refugees, women, and children) were massacred here on May 13, 1997. Congolese soldiers said the order came from Col. Wilson, head of a brigade of Kabila's troops, and Col. Richard, the brigade's operations chief, both Rwandans. Gen. Gaston Muyango (Congolese) held the title of military commander but had no real power, they said. Ebola outbreak On 16 May 2018, a case of Ebola occurred in the city, the disease having spread there from an outbreak in the countryside. A new outbreak was reported on 1 June 2020. Three cases were confirmed by the WHO and three cases are probable, of whom four people had died as of June 2, 2020. Notable places Catholic Mission station and Central African history research centre of Bamanya A large research centre for Central African history, originally set up by Fathers Gustaaf Hulstaert (1900–1990) and Honoré Vinck, is at the Catholic mission station of Bamanya (Missionaries of the Sacred Heart (MSC)), east of Mbandaka. Eala Botanical Garden One of the finest botanical gardens of central Africa is at nearby Eala, about east of the town centre. The Eala Botanical Garden, founded in 1900, contains between 4,000 and 5,000 species. It covers approximately with special collections