Seven American aid workers who responded to the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo are quarantining at a U.S.-backed isolation facility in Kenya despite a court order suspending activities at the site, according to Reuters.

The development was disclosed by Franklin Graham, president and CEO of Samaritan’s Purse, in responses to Reuters’ questions, while U.S. State Department officials and another source familiar with the matter also confirmed the arrangement to the news agency.

The quarantine comes weeks after the planned bio-isolation facility became the centre of widespread protests in Kenya.

In early June, hundreds of residents marched through Nanyuki in central Kenya, opposing the project over fears that it could expose nearby communities to Ebola, with demonstrators demanding that construction be halted.

What they are saying

Graham said the facility is currently accommodating seven members of Samaritan’s Purse’s American Disaster Assistance Response Team who recently returned from Ebola response operations.

  • “Samaritan’s Purse has seven American Disaster Assistance Response Team staff members there.”

He added that none of the aid workers has shown signs of Ebola infection and that they are undergoing a mandatory 21-day quarantine under Kenyan government supervision.

  • “None of them have any symptoms, but they are being quarantined by the Kenyan government for 21 days.”

A U.S. State Department official said Kenyan authorities approved the group’s transfer to the facility, where they are being monitored by clinicians from the U.S. Public Health Service as a precautionary measure.

Another source familiar with the matter said one member of the group had a potential high-risk exposure to Ebola and that all seven remain under health monitoring, with Kenyan authorities restricting them from leaving the facility or travelling elsewhere in the country.

  • “There is one potential high risk exposure,” the source said, adding that their health was being monitored and that Kenyan authorities were not allowing the group to leave the facility to travel elsewhere in the country.

Get up to speed

The isolation facility has remained controversial since plans for its construction emerged earlier this year. Residents of Nanyuki staged protests against the project, arguing that housing Americans potentially exposed to Ebola could put nearby communities at risk because military personnel stationed at the Laikipia Air Base interact daily with local residents.

  • One of the protest organisers, Patrick Wahome, said residents feared any outbreak could quickly spread through schools and neighbourhoods due to the close ties between the military base and the surrounding community.
  • The dispute later moved to court, where a Kenyan judge ordered activities at the facility to be suspended pending a final ruling. Kenya’s Health Minister was subsequently found guilty of contempt of court for failing to comply with the suspension order and announced an immediate halt to construction.
  • However, Reuters reported that work on the facility continued despite the court directive, citing U.S. officials and satellite imagery reviewed by the news agency.

Defending the project, President William Ruto said the facility forms part of Kenya’s broader disease preparedness strategy and longstanding health partnership with the United States. He maintained that the centre would not serve only Americans but could also be used by Kenyans and other partners when necessary.

What you should know

The quarantine arrangement forms part of a broader U.S. strategy to prevent the expanding Ebola outbreak from reaching American shores.

President Donald Trump’s administration is seeking more than $1.4 billion in additional funding from Congress to strengthen Ebola preparedness, support treatment and evacuation efforts, and prevent the virus from spreading to the United States.

Another $500 million would support global health security initiatives such as disease surveillance, laboratory capacity and cross-border coordination, while $90 million has been requested for diplomatic and emergency response operations, including the evacuation of infected U.S. citizens.