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WHO worries about outbreak’s scale and speed of Ebola spread as Congo announces 134 deaths

The World Health Organization director-general openly worried Tuesday over the “scale and speed” of an outbreak of a rare type of Ebola in eastern Congo, where authorities reported a sharp increase in suspected deaths — to at least 134 — and more than 500 suspected cases. The virus spread undetected for weeks after the first known death as authorities tested for a more common type of Ebola and came up negative, health experts and aid workers said. The Bundibugyo virus has no approved medicines or vaccines. Congo’s health minister, Samuel Roger Kamba, said at a press conference on Tuesday that 69 cases had been treated and 134 people have died since the outbreak began. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, said he is “deeply concerned about the scale and speed of the epidemic,” adding that the U.N. health agency will convene its emergency committee later Tuesday. He pointed to the emergence of cases in urban areas, the deaths of healthcare workers and significant population movement.

Full report : WHO worries about outbreak’s scale and speed of Ebola spread as Congo announces 134 deaths.