WHO warns Ebola is spreading rapidly in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The World Health Organization warned on Friday that the fatal Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo is spreading rapidly, even as intensified efforts to control the virus continue.

The WHO said it was still racing to keep pace with the worsening situation in northeastern DRC.

“The outbreak remains serious” and is “evolving so fast”, said Marie-Roseline Belizaire, the WHO Africa emergencies chief.

She told reporters in Geneva, speaking from Bunia—the capital of Ituri province, the outbreak’s epicenter—adding that the response was growing stronger each day.

The outbreak was declared on May 15, though transmission had been going undetected for some time beforehand.

It is caused by the rare Bundibugyo strain of the virus, for which there is no vaccine or specific treatment.

There have been 896 confirmed cases so far in the DRC, including 232 confirmed deaths, with 21 new cases in the last 24 hours, according to the latest WHO update.

More than 90 percent of known cases in the DRC have been in conflict‑wracked Ituri.

The outbreak has also spread to North Kivu and South Kivu provinces.

Belizaire noted that the epidemic was evolving so rapidly that the response had to race to keep pace with a virus that spreads through close contact and infected bodily fluids.

The number of treatment beds available for Ebola patients had gone from zero to more than 500, she