Ebola outbreak is declared an international emergency by World Health Organization

The World Health Organization declared Ebola an international health emergency on Friday, following an outbreak that has claimed more than 1,400 lives in the Democratic Republic of Congo and spread to Uganda, The Hill reports.

Health officials have sought to contain the virus since the outbreak began in Aug. 2018, but more than 2,100 cases have been confirmed. In a "worst-case scenario," officials say the outbreak could take up to two years to contain. The disease has claimed more than 1,400 lives in the Congo in recent months.

The virus spread to Uganda when a family of six fled a treatment facility near the border and crossed through border control, later becoming the first victims of the virus outside of the Congo — with a 5-year-old boy and his 50-year-old grandmother ultimately passing away, reports The Hill. Neighboring countries have been taking measures to prevent further spread of the disease with vaccines and health checkpoints to screen more than 65 million people crossing the border.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

The Ebola virus was previously declared a public health emergency in 2014 and the current WHO declaration is only the fifth time the organization has labeled a viral outbreak as an international concern. Read more at The Hill.