WHO: No signs of Ebola abating in West Africa

The Ebola outbreak shows no signs of abating, has killed 3,879 people and threatens more Western African nations poorly equipped to deal with the disease, the World Health Organization has said in a report, even as the United Nations Ebola response coordinator said the outbreak could be contained.

"If we can reduce the number of people who are passing on their infection to others by about 70 percent, then the outbreak will come to an end," Dr. David Nabarro, the senior U.N. coordinator for the international response to Ebola said Wednesday.

"If, on the other hand, people continue to be able to transmit the virus to others when they have been ill, then the outbreak will continue and continue growing at the rate it is."

The WHO said on Wednesday that 8,033 people had caught the infection up to October 5, and 3,879 of those had died. Liberia and Sierra Leone, the two worst-hit nations, had less than a quarter of the beds needed.

The news comes as the United States reported that that the first patient diagnosed of Ebola in the country has died.

"The situation in Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone continues to deteriorate, with widespread and persistent transmission of Ebola," said the WHO report. "There is no evidence that the EVD epidemic in West Africa is being brought under control."

It said a reported fall in the number of new cases in Liberia was "unlikely to be genuine" and rather reflected how responders were being overwhelmed by data.

The report added that countries neighboring those affected by Ebola had been told to prepare for the disease to cross their borders.

The WHO report came hours after burial workers ended a one-day strike in Sierra Leone over unpaid wages, which left contagious corpses of Ebola victims at homes and on the streets of the capital Freetown. 

Health workers in Liberia have also threatened to strike if their demands of a $700-a-month salary and safety equipment were not met by the end of the week.

Of the West African nations battling Ebola, Liberia has been the hardest hit, with 2,210 deaths recorded, according to the latest figures released by the WHO. Sierra Leone has had 879 confirmed, probable and suspected Ebola deaths.

Liberia's President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf said that there were early signs that the outbreak might be “in decline” despite aid arriving in her country too slowly.

However, the country is still in a state of emergency. Her office announced on Wednesday that an election for seats in the Senate, due on Oct. 14, had been put off until further notice.

The U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, meanwhile, issued an "urgent plea" to all nations to boost their response to Ebola, as the U.S. announced it was sending 100 marines to Liberia.

Nabarro praised the United States, Britain, the African Union and others for assembling healthcare workers and military personnel to build and staff treatment centers in affected areas. He urged all countries to contribute whatever they could to the effort.

Nabarro, who was the U.N. coordinator for the international response to avian and human influenza outbreaks, said "... good quality care in an isolated space that enables people to have a good chance of recovery is the key requirement," he said. "To do that, we need to have people who are skilled in providing care."

Healthcare systems in affected West African countries do not have the capacity to deal with the epidemic. Treatment centers are full and healthcare workers are at risk of infection.

Ebola can take as long as three weeks before its victims show symptoms, at which point it becomes contagious. Ebola, which can cause fever, vomiting and diarrhea, spreads through contact with bodily fluids such as blood or saliva.

Al Jazeera and Reuters