Treatment Facility Construction Continues in Liberia

By Amaani Lyle
DoD News, Defense Media Activity

WASHINGTON, Oct. 14, 2014 - About 100 additional U.S. Army personnel arrived in Liberia over the weekend as part of ongoing efforts to stanch the deadly Ebola virus, Pentagon spokesman Army Col. Steve Warren said in a briefing here today.

The soldiers dispatched to the West African region bring the total there to about 565, with several thousand projected to go this fall.

"This 100 were part of the advance party from the 101st [Airborne] Division," Warren said of the unit, based at Fort Campbell, Kentucky.

The main tent structure assembly is complete for the 25-bed hospital, Warren said, and building of supporting facilities will continue, with completion projected next week. Tent assembly for the first Ebola treatment unit began Oct. 4 and additional site preparation is necessary before vertical construction can begin, he added, with completion expected by the end of the month.

Construction for the second Ebola treatment unit, he said, is expected to begin in the next few days, with an estimated completion date of Nov. 1. Preliminary assessment is underway on the third Ebola treatment unit, the colonel added.

"This will be built using an existing structure instead of tents," he said, adding that an established start or completion date for this unit is still pending.

Additionally, the colonel said, three mobile testing laboratories, complete as of Oct. 3, are up and running and have processed 88 samples.