The worst outbreak of the deadly Ebola virus is sweeping across four countries in Africa.
The Ebola epidemic is the worst by geographical spread and the number of people infected.
So far, the virus has claimed victims in Sierra Leone, Liberia, Nigeria after the first reported case were in Guinea earlier this year.
The most notable death is that of doctor leading the battle to tackle the disease in Sierra Leone, Sheik Umar Khan, aged 39.
Khan is at least the second doctor in the frontline against Ebola to die.
Dr Samuel Brisbane passed away in Liberia at the weekend.
Almost 700 people have dies and as the virus rampages through some of the poorest African states with few medical facilities and doctors, hundreds more are threatened.
The death rate of Ebola is 90% of those contracting the illness.
Flights and football banned
Now, governments are moving to stop the disease spreading by banning flights to infected countries and cancelling sporting events where players and crowds gather and can be infected from the sweat of people standing around them.
Ebola spreads on contact with an infected person’s bodily fluids.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) reported 1,200 Ebola cases in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone.
Most deaths have been in Guinea (319), then Liberia (249) and Sierra Leone (224)
The first victim has died in Nigeria and some other countries have reported isolated cases – including Germany, the UK and US. These cases are all air travellers who have departed from one of the infected countries.
The Foreign & Commonwealth Office (FCO) is warning British expats, business travellers and holiday makers to stay away from West African countries where the virus is spreading.
No known cure
Liberia has already closed all borders in a bid to limit the infection from spreading.
Ebola symptoms include a high fever, internal bleeding and damage to the nervous system.
The incubation period is between two and 21 days.
So far, doctors say they have no vaccine for treating the virus, although the WHO is working on a cure.
The source of the virus is suspected to be fruit bats living in the wild.
Some doctors say the disease is spreading because family and friends try to wash victims to help ease their pain, but only succeed in spreading the virus. Doctors have reported families trying to remove victims from quarantine.
