the organisation has said. They are believed to have contracted Ebola on 27 March while working in the eastern region of Ituri on a project unrelated to the virus, before the outbreak was identified. The volunteers are among the first known victims of DR Congo's Ebola outbreak, which has resulted in more than 200 suspected deaths and more than 850 suspected cases. The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies  said they had died after serving their communities "with courage and humanity".

Alikana Udumusi Augustin, Sezabo Katanabo and Ajiko Chandiru Viviane had been working in the town of Mongwalu, which is now considered the epicenter of the outbreak. They died between 5 and 16 May. Health experts warn the bodies of Ebola patients can spread the virus because bodily fluids remain highly infectious after death. The outbreak involves a rare species of Ebola, known as Bundibugyo, which has no proven vaccine and kills about a third of those infected. On Friday, the World Health Organization (WHO) raised the public health risk from the virus in DR Congo from "high" to "very high". WHO chief Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus also said the risk in the wider region in Africa was high but remained low globally. (BBC)