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The Democratic Republic of Congo has recorded more than 3,000 Ebola infections, including 1,354 deaths, in its 17th Ebola outbreak, health officials said on Sunday.
According to official figures, confirmed cases have risen to 3,075 across five provinces, an increase of about 1,000 cases in just 10 days after the outbreak surpassed the 2,000-case mark on July 15.
Authorities attributed the sharp rise partly to improved disease detection and expanded testing.
The latest outbreak, declared on May 15, is caused by the Bundibugyo strain of the Ebola virus, for which there is currently no approved vaccine or treatment.
Nearly 90 per cent of all confirmed infections have been recorded in Ituri Province in northeastern DR Congo, which borders South Sudan and Uganda, according to the World Health Organization.
Health officials warned that the outbreak could continue for several more months, with response efforts hampered in some hospitals by strikes involving healthcare workers demanding unpaid salaries.
Ebola spreads through contact with the bodily fluids of infected people and causes severe haemorrhagic fever. The disease has claimed more than 15,000 lives across Africa over the past five decades.
Meanwhile, efforts to combat the outbreak are advancing. Oxford University announced on Friday that the first group of volunteers has received an experimental vaccine developed specifically against the Bundibugyo strain.
Researchers are also fast-tracking several other vaccine candidates into clinical trials, while two potential treatments are currently under development.
