Two more confirmed cases of Ebola have been reported in Uganda.
The World Health Organization has confirmed that the 5-year-old boy, the first case of Ebola in Uganda, died Tuesday night. The new cases are the boy’s 3-year-old brother and his grandmother.
“The confirmed cases are currently under isolation at Bwera Hospital Ebola Treatment Unit for further management,” a Tuesday statement by the Ministry of Health read.
Eight other people are being monitored after coming in contact with the family.
Neighboring Democratic Republic of the Congo is the site of the second-largest and deadliest Ebola outbreak in history. More than 1,300 patients have died since the outbreak began in August. These are the first confirmed cases outside the country.
The Uganda Ministry of Health and the World Health Organization are planning to increase efforts to vaccinate health workers on the front lines and those who are potential contacts.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is deploying resources to the area as well.
“CDC is working with our response partners to rapidly detect and prevent additional cases in Uganda, and to prevent further spread of Ebola in DRC and to other neighboring countries,” the agency said in a statement Tuesday.
The agency maintains that the risk for transmission in the United States “remains very low.”
