One person dies from Ebola every 30 minutes - UN

UN: One person dies from Ebola every half hour

The United Nations says Ebola is spreading faster than ever in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), with one person dying from the disease every 30 minutes.

UN Under-Secretary-General and Emergency Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcher said "we cannot let the virus overwhelm our response."

He said the UN had deployed 20 staff to the region in addition to the chief Ebola coordinator. International donors have pledged nearly $300 million to fight the outbreak.

An additional $30.5 million has been requested for the DRC and four neighboring countries, in addition to the $24 million previously allocated.

According to Tom Fletcher, "it is necessary to double the number of teams providing safe and dignified burials, triple the resources of treatment centers, improve the system of contact tracing and attract more experienced leaders." In addition, it is planned to meet the needs of the region for clean water, sanitation, medical care and other basic services.

The UN representative concluded his remarks by emphasizing that "more than two thousand people have already died and many more are at risk. The world must wake up and not remain indifferent."

Ebola has been recorded in a total of six provinces of the DRC. As of August 12, more than 4,660 cases of the disease and 2,184 deaths have been recorded.