The World Health Organization announced on Tuesday that the Ebola outbreak in countries like Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea could reach terrifying new heights. If things continue progressing the way they are, then WHO projects that by the end of the year the case count could rise to as many as 10,000 new cases a week.

Two weeks ago, the organization Save the Children reported that an average of five people an hour were becoming infected with the disease, leaving a weekly tally of around 840 new cases. Based on the progression of the disease this year, that number was expected to double every three weeks.

This outbreak has been heralded for months as the worst in recorded history, and a representative from the WHO says it is likely to get worse before it gets better.

Already the number of people infected has reached 8,914 and a reported 4,447 have died. The mortality rate has gone up to 70 percent. Known to go as high as 90 percent in past outbreaks, this outbreak had been hovering at around 50 percent until recently.

The disease’s reach is not just limited to West Africa and people in other countries throughout the world have become increasingly anxious about the possibility of an outbreak closer to home.

These concerns seem especially poignant in the United States after the first infection to occur on American soil was reported. The CDC has pledged to step up protective protocol, including sending specialized medical teams to hospitals caring for an Ebola patient.

Dr. Thomas Frieden, director of the CDC, says that the specialized team will help medical professionals treat patients by training them in safety and containment protocol. He also promises further training for hospitals all across America to help ensure that the professionals caring for patients stay safe.

Similar concerns are arising in Spain, where another nurse contracted the virus after caring for an Ebola stricken patient.

There are several goals in place meant to help stop the outbreak at its source. The WHO would like to have 70 percent of those infected in West Africa in isolation within the next three months. In this same period of time they hope to have about 70 percent of the dead buried.

It is hoped that these measures will help ensure that the number of cases reported each week begins to drop by the end of the year.