Congo Reports First Ebola Cases as Outbreak Continues - East Idaho News
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Congo Reports First Ebola Cases as Outbreak Continues

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GETTY 82514 AfricaMap?  SQUARESPACE CACHEVERSION=1408986655155iStock/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) — Ebola continues to spread in Africa and ignite fears with the Democratic Republic of Congo reporting its first cases over the weekend.

The Congo is hundreds of miles away from the nearest affected country, but officials there say they suspect they’ve had more than a dozen Ebola deaths.

At last count on Friday, the virus had killed at least 1,427 people and sickened 1,188 more — numbers thought to “vastly underestimate” the outbreak’s true toll, according to the World Health Organization, which is expected to release updated case counts soon.

The outbreak emerged in March and quickly became the deadliest on record. An estimated 48 percent of all Ebola deaths recorded since the virus’ discovery in 1976 have occurred in the last five months, according to WHO data.


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