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A deadly Ebola outbreak is spreading, and Americans are now caught in the middle of it.
The World Health Organization declared the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo a public health emergency of international concern on Sunday, as the death toll climbed to at least 100 with more than 390 suspected cases reported across the country's eastern Ituri province.
At least six Americans have been exposed to the virus during the outbreak, sources told CBS News. Three of those exposures are considered high-risk, while one American is believed to be showing symptoms. It remains unclear whether any have tested positive for infection.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed it was supporting the withdrawal of a small number of affected Americans but declined to specify how many. Officials are reportedly exploring transporting the group to a U.S. military base in Germany, though that has not been confirmed.
During a Sunday briefing, CDC officials stressed that the risk to the American public remains low. The U.S. government has nonetheless issued a Level Four travel advisory, its most severe, urging Americans not to travel to the DR Congo under any circumstances.
The outbreak is being caused by the Bundibugyo strain of the Ebola virus, for which there are currently no approved treatments or vaccines, a stark contrast to the Zaire strain that has driven most previous outbreaks and for which medical countermeasures exist.
The WHO has warned the outbreak could prove significantly larger than current figures suggest, given high positivity rates in early samples and a rapidly rising number of suspected cases. International spread has already been documented, with two confirmed cases and one death recorded in Uganda's capital, Kampala, both linked to travel from the DR Congo.
The last major Ebola crisis, the 2014 to 2016 West Africa outbreak, infected more than 28,600 people and killed over 11,000.
Rwanda said it was tightening border screening as a precaution. Nigeria said it was closely monitoring developments.
