Ebola virus death toll hits 1,229

The death toll from the Ebola outbreak in West Africa has risen to 1,229, the World Health Organization said on Tuesday. According to the WHO’s latest report, between August 14 and 16 at least 84 people lost their lives and 113 new Ebola cases were seen in Liberia, Guinea, Sierra Leone and Nigeria. Ebola has so far killed 466 in Liberia, 394 in Guinea, 365 in Sierra Leone and four in Nigeria. In total, 2,240 cases have been confirmed since the outbreak occurred in Guinea in March. The WHO’s emergency committee on Ebola declared the disease an international public health emergency in early August, which marked the third time such an alarm level has been raised. Ebola has no confirmed cure or vaccine yet. However, the U.S. sent an untested serum to Liberia for two ill Liberian doctors, while Canada has sent a vaccine, which is on testing stage, to the WHO. The virus can be transmitted to humans from wild animals and also spreads through contact with the body fluids of an infected person or someone who has died of the disease.