Today's Edition
GENEVA (AFP)
The risk from the deadly Ebola outbreak has been raised to the highest level for the Democratic Republic of Congo, the World Health Organisation said Friday, as the toll continues to rise.
The WHO upgraded its risk assessment level from high to very high for the DR Congo, while keeping the regional risk level at high and the global risk level at low.
WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the situation was "deeply worrisome."
He said there were now nearly 750 suspected cases in the DR Congo and 177 suspected deaths, as health workers scramble to track down contacts of everyone thought to be infected with the virus.
"The Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo is spreading rapidly," he told a press conference.
"So far, 82 cases have been confirmed in DRC, with seven confirmed deaths.
"But we know the epidemic in DRC is much larger. There are now almost 750 suspected cases and 177 suspected deaths."
He said the situation in Uganda was "stable," with two cases confirmed in people who travelled from DRC and one death.
Measures taken in Uganda, including "intense contact tracing" and calling off the Martyrs' Day commemorations, "appear to have been effective in preventing the further spread of the virus," Tedros added.
While a US national who was working in the DRC has tested positive and been transferred to Germany for care, Tedros said another US national deemed to be a high-risk contact had been transferred to the Czech Republic.
Besides national staff already in the DRC, he said 22 international staff had been deployed to the field, "including some of our most experienced people."
Tedros said that violence and insecurity were impeding the response to the outbreak in the DRC.
