WARNING: What Ebola Experts Just Forecast Could Make You Wonder If You’re Adequately Prepped

Here’s a number that should get your attention. If the experts at the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) are right, the number of Ebola cases in just two countries could surpass 1 million in only four months. And that’s a staggering figure that might mean a far greater potential of international threat.

Fox News reports on sources that say the CDC has revised its estimate of the number of cases of the deadly virus that could be counted in Liberia and Sierra Leone by late January.

CDC scientists conclude there may be as many as 21,000 reported and unreported cases in just those two countries as soon as the end of this month, according to a draft version of the report obtained by The Associated Press. They also predict that the two countries could have a staggering 550,000 to 1.4 million cases by late January.

The CDC calculations are based, in part, on assumptions that cases have been dramatically underreported. Other projections haven’t made the same kind of attempt to quantify illnesses that may have been missed in official counts.

A New York Times article cites sources in the World Health Organization (WHO) saying that the Ebola epidemic in West Africa is likely much worse than previously reported, though the WHO numbers don’t approach the far more pessimistic forecast by the CDC.

In addition to predicting many more cases and deaths, the new report for the first time raises the possibility that the epidemic will not be brought under control and that the disease will become endemic in West Africa, meaning that it could reach a steady state and become a constant presence there.

“The epidemiologic outlook is bleak,” the report said.

If control does not improve now, there will be more than 20,000 cases by Nov. 2, and the numbers of cases and deaths will continue increasing from hundreds to thousands per week for months to come, according to the report.

Six months into the biggest Ebola outbreak ever, says ABC News, scientists warn that this wave of the disease is different, according to a study by the World Health Organization.

In addition to predicting many more cases and deaths, the new report for the first time raises the possibility that the epidemic will not be brought under control and that the disease will become endemic in West Africa, meaning that it could reach a steady state and become a constant presence there.

“The epidemiologic outlook is bleak,” the report said.

If control does not improve now, there will be more than 20,000 cases by Nov. 2, and the numbers of cases and deaths will continue increasing from hundreds to thousands per week for months to come, according to the report.

Meantime, a second deployment of U.S. troops arrived in Liberia as part of an eventual mission of 3,000 soldiers helping its beleaguered health services battle the Ebola outbreak.