The death toll from Ebola has passed 4,000, the World Health Organization warned.

The death toll from Ebola has passed 4,000, the World Health Organization warned, as authorities worldwide tried to prevent panic over the deadly disease and a Spanish nurse fought for her life in hospital.

The WHO said 4,033 people have died from Ebola as of October 8 out of a total of 8,399 registered cases in seven countries. The sharp rise in deaths came as the UN said aid pledges to fight the outbreak have fallen well short of the $1 billion (800 million euros) needed.

Spanish government officials were due to meet on Saturday morning for a gathering of their new crisis committee to tackle the crisis after a Madrid nurse became the first person to get infected with the hemorrhagic fever outside of Africa.

They have called for calm and vowed to boost health safety protocol and investigate what failings led to the nurse, Teresa Romero, getting infected.

Almost all the deaths have occurred in west Africa, but after Romero's death fears spread beyond that region about the world's worst-ever Ebola epidemic.

The Canadian government advised its citizens on Friday to leave the west African countries hardest hit by Ebola, while taking measures at its own borders to screen for potentially exposed travelers.

The US and Britain also boosted screening at major airports.
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention predicted the number of cases could reach 1.4 million by January unless strong measures are taken to contain the disease.

From Australia to Zimbabwe, and Brazil to Spain, people who showed signs of fever or had recent contact with Ebola victims were whisked into isolation units or ordered to stay in their homes.