Encephalitis has claimed nine more lives within a week, raising the death toll to over 250 in the Gorakhpur region of India's Uttar Pradesh state Wednesday.

Locals say the virus has spread due to a lack of vaccinations.

[Ashok Choudhary, Relative of Encephalitis Patient]:
"The vaccines that had come to Uttar Pradesh went bad due to breaking of the cold chain, so the government decided not to use them. Therefore no vaccinations took place."

Doctors say children from six months to 15-years-old are the worst affected, and most of the victims come from rural areas.

[Dr. K P Kushwaha, BRD Medical College and Hospital]:
"There are two types of viruses. One is the Japanese encephalitis virus and the other is entero-virus. Both the viruses have been found here. The symptoms of entero-virus are found in most of the children and the Japanese encephalitis virus is found in fewer children."

The viral infection has been spreading at a fast pace leading to shortage of beds in local and government hospitals, where three to four children are being treated on a single bed.

Doctors say encephalitis is at it at its peak until October.

Those who survive the viral infection may have to endure life as mentally or physically challenged persons.

Massive flooding and a lack of sanitation facilities in the region are a perfect breeding ground for mosquitoes that spread the virus, fueling a possible outbreak.

In 2005, the country's worst encephalitis outbreak in nearly 30 years claimed over 1,500 lives.

There is no specific cure for the mosquito-borne disease that has killed thousands in India since 1978.