THE spread of Ebola in DR Congo has created a “deeply alarming” situation, a top group of medics said on Saturday.

The remarks by Dr Alan Gonzales, the deputy director of Medecins Sans Frontieres, came two weeks after the disease outbreak.

There have been at least 246 deaths from Ebola in DR Congo and more than 1,000 other suspected cases.

Neighbouring Uganda has reported one death and nine confirmed cases.

Dr Gonzales said: “Two weeks after the declaration of the Ebola disease outbreak in Ituri Province, the situation is deeply alarming.

“Never before has an Ebola outbreak recorded so many cases so soon after its declaration.”

He added: “The reality today is that nobody knows the true scale and severity of this outbreak.”

Director-general of the World Health Organisation Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus visited the eastern Congolese province of Ituri, the area worst hit by the virus.

Dr Tedros urged communities in the centre of the outbreak to play a bigger role in fighting the disease.

“Certain practices, including touching the bodies of those who have died from Ebola, can spread the virus further. While we grieve for those we’ve lost, we must do everything we can so that we don’t lose another, and get into a cycle of grief,” he said.