Outbreak! The deadly Ebola virus is ravaging West Africa--and alarming the rest of the world.

• Author: Smith, Patricia
• Position: Cover story

It starts with a fever, like many other illnesses. But before long, victims have terrible stomach pains and start vomiting and gasping for air. They begin to bleed internally, as the virus attacks vital organs. The skin erupts in bruises and large blisters. In some cases, blood pours uncontrollably from the nose and eyes. About 60 percent of victims die, usually within a week.

Although the Ebola virus has so far struck only Africa, it's been spreading dread throughout the world.

"We have never seen an Ebola epidemic on this scale," says Dr. Peter Piot, a Belgian who helped discover the disease almost 40 years ago. "In the last six months we have been witnessing what can be described as a perfect storm--everything is there for it to snowball." The current outbreak began in a small village in Guinea (see map), but no one knows how the first victim--a 2-year-old boy--got infected. Villagers often eat monkey and bat meat, and both animals are carriers of Ebola. Cooking kills the virus, so the real risk is exposure to the blood while killing or butchering an infected animal.

So far the virus has infected more than 4,000 people in Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Nigeria, and Senegal, and killed more than 2,300. The outbreak is out of control and still getting worse (see "Should We Be Scared?" p. 18).

16 Dead in One Family

Experts predict it will take months to contain, and the World Health Organization says as many as 20,000 people could ultimately be infected before it's over. In the meantime, Ebola is decimating families and turning entire villages into ghost towns.

Erison Moussa Touray, 22, of Kenema, Sierra Leone, has lost 16 family members to Ebola. Now, his mother is sick. "I hope for my mother," he says. "She's the only one I have left."

Those lucky enough to survive are often shunned because of fear. "When I fell sick, everybody abandoned me," says Jattu Lahai, 26, who returned to her village in Sierra Leone after recovering. Even her family was afraid to touch her.

Thousands more healthcare workers are needed to fight the epidemic, and many of those who've cared for the sick have become victims themselves. More than 240 have been infected, and at least 120 of them have died. Three Americans contracted Ebola while doing medical aid work in West Africa and were flown to the United States for specialized treatment, Two have recovered and a third remains hospitalized in Nebraska. The goal is to nurse people through the illness, using fluids...