Kinshasa, DR Congo - The number of Ebola deaths in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has passed 300, officials said late on Thursday, as the outbreak continues to spread within the region. 

There are currently 1,155 confirmed cases of Ebola in Congo, the Information Ministry in Kinshasa reported. Of these cases, 304 people have died, it said.

Earlier in the day, the head of the health authority Africa CDC, Director General Jean Kaseya, said, although the outbreak has not yet reached its peak, 95% of the nation's beds are full.

"We must build treatment centers and increase bed capacity," Kaseya underlined.

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The rapid rise in cases is causing growing concern. None of the past Ebola epidemics in Africa has seen the number of confirmed cases reach this level within the first five weeks. 

Clinical trials of two potential drugs are set to begin next week in Bunia, capital of the Ituri province hard-hit by the outbreak, Kaseya said.

These are the experimental Ebola drug MBP134 and the antiviral drug remdesivir. Supplies of remdesivir, developed by manufacturers in the US and Egypt, had already reached Congo, Kaseya said. 

Ebola is a life-threatening disease transmitted through physical contact and contact with bodily fluids. The current outbreak, which was first reported by authorities in mid-May, is particularly difficult to contain, partly because of the lack of a vaccine or specific treatment for the Bundibugyo strain.

Meanwhile, the Congolese government on Thursday ordered a 21-day quarantine for people wishing to travel from Ebola-affected areas elsewhere in the country or abroad. The measure aims to reduce the risk of infection and allow for comprehensive contact tracing to find people potentially exposed to the virus, a statement said.