The Ebola death count has risen to more than 4,000 people, the World Health Organization announced Friday, showcasing the degree to which health officials have struggled to catch up with the virus.
There were 8,399 cases of Ebola through Oct. 8, WHO said, including 4,033 deaths.
The organization said that 2,316 people died in Liberia, 930 in Sierra Leone, 778 in Guinea, eight in Nigeria and one in the United States.
U.S. officials have been calling for a swifter international response to the deadly disease, with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Tom Frieden calling the virus the most pressing global health threat since AIDS.
The death of Liberian national Thomas Eric Duncan in Dallas this week stoked a growing national debate over how U.S. officials should respond to the Ebola crisis.
The Obama administration recently announced heightened screening measures at five U.S. airports, saying officials would take the temperatures of travelers from Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea.
Some Republicans have called for a travel ban on all passengers from the countries most heavily hit with Ebola.
However, the death rate of less than 50 percent is an improvement on recent outbreaks of the Ebola virus. Health officials attribute those gains to better public awareness about the disease and how to detect its symptoms.
