Ebola patient’s family in US admitted to Berlin isolation ward

The family of a US citizen who contracted Ebola in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), where an outbreak of a rare strain of the virus has killed more than 130 people, has been placed in isolation at the Berlin hospital where he is receiving treatment.

Germany’s health ministry said on Thursday that the patient’s wife and four children were flown to Germany on a special flight and are being treated as close contacts.

The ministry did not confirm whether any family members had tested positive for Ebola or were showing symptoms.

The patient, identified by the Serge Christian mission organization as medical missionary Dr Peter Stafford, remains in stable condition, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Stafford contracted the virus while treating patients in the DRC, where he had been living with his family, Serge said.

Berlin’s Charite hospital was selected for his treatment because Germany is around 12 hours closer to the DRC than the United States, the White House said, rejecting a Washington Post report that Washington had opposed bringing Stafford back to the US.

German authorities did not comment on why the patient was admitted to a hospital in Berlin.