A Spanish priest who visited regions of western African affected by the Ebola virus outbreak died after getting evacuated back to Spain.

The Wall Street Journal reported that Father Miguel Pajares, 75, died in a hospital in Madrid Tuesday morning. He was the first European person to die of Ebola, TIME reports.

The virus has claimed more than 1,000 lives since it was first reported in March and has affected four west African countries including Guinea, Sierra Leone, Liberia and Nigeria. But Pajares is the first European to die from the disease.

An experimental drug, called ZMapp, was developed by a San Diego firm and been used on two American health workers who were evacuated to Atlanta after being infected while working in Africa.

The drug has been approved by the Federal Drug Administration on an emergency basis, as well as in clinical trials on a vaccine that is expected in 2015.

Spain's Ministry of Health Services also approved use of ZMapp for Pajares on Saturday, two days after Pajares was admitted, and it had been delivered immediately to the hospital.

The Associated Press reported that he was given the experimental drug.

Initial reports revealed Pajares was initially in stable condition, but he requested no more updates to be given to the media after that, the WSJ reported.

EFE, the Spanish news agency, reported that Pajares had trouble breathing and his vital signs declined in the hours before he died, according to the WSJ.

The use of the experimental drug, which has never been tested on humans, was approved by the World Health Organization because of the quick spread of the virus, which has affected thousands, according to The Associated Press.

Liberia is the first African country that will receive ZMapp in the next 48 hours to treat two physicians.

"The Liberians can count on their government, but Guineans can only count on God in the face of Ebola," Assiatou Diallo, a nurse in Conakry, Guinea's capital, told The Associated Press.

But they might be the last, as the company that produced the serum said supplies were exhausted Monday.

The hashtag #GiveUsTheSerum has been seen on social media to show support for producing and shipping more of ZMapp.

"We can't afford to be passive while many more die," said Aisha Dab, a Senegalese-Gambian journalist, according to AP.