Uganda’s exposure to Ebola infection from the neighboring Democratic Republic of Congo appeared to have increased on Thursday, as the death toll rose to two and three suspected cases were reported in a Ugandan border hospital.

The number of people in Uganda who may have been exposed to carriers of the Ebola virus expanded significantly, from eight to at least 27.

The disclosures, in a Ministry of Health update on its website, suggested an accelerating threat to Uganda from the Ebola virus, which has been ravaging eastern Congo for the past year and was reported to have spread to Uganda this week.

A 5-year-old Congolese boy who entered a border town in western Uganda with his family on June 9 died of Ebola on Wednesday, the first case in Uganda since the Congo outbreak. His 50-year-old grandmother who was traveling with him became the second fatality, the Uganda Health Ministry said on Thursday.