(CNN)-More than 1,100 people have been diagnosed with yellow fever in Angola since December, according to the World Health Organization,
and at least 178 have died. It's the worst outbreak of yellow fever in
the country in three decades, and the supply of vaccines is running low.
The outbreak began in the capital of Luanda but has now spread to at least 10 of the 18 provinces in the country.
"With
the majority of cases reported in ... Luanda, the situation is more
dangerous and difficult to contain because the disease can spread easily
from one person to another. We are already seeing cases spread to a
number of provinces outside Luanda," Dr. Sergio Yactayo, WHO expert on
epidemic diseases, said in a WHO publication.
Of
greater concern to health officials is that China, the Democratic
Republic of Congo and Kenya have reported cases they suspect were
imported from Angola. Namibia and Zambia, which border Angola, also are
on high alert, the WHO said.
"The
worry is that this could result in a widespread outbreak of yellow fever
in Angola, Asia and other areas," Dr. Tom Frieden, director of the U.S.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, told CNN.
"We have to keep going and vaccinate all
the people in Luanda and the affected provinces to end this outbreak.
This is an enormous job which is exhausting supplies of vaccines,"
Yactayo said.
The emergency
stockpile of the vaccine has been exhausted, the WHO said. Another 1.5
million doses are needed for residents of Luanda alone. In the meantime,
shipments designated for the national routine vaccination there are
being redirected to help control the outbreak.
"It's possible we could run out of vaccine," Frieden said.
Vaccine manufacturers are doing their part to increase vaccine production but the process takes some time, he said.
Travelers
to the country, and any country where yellow fever circulates,
including 33 other African countries, are advised to be vaccinated
before traveling. Many of those countries require proof of vaccination
upon arrival.