A British citizen who has tested positive for Ebola is being flown to the UK for treatment at the Royal Free Hospital in London, with the government saying the risk to the public remains low.
The individual, believed to be a healthcare worker, contracted the virus while in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). They are expected to arrive in the UK later today.
A UK Government spokesman said: “A British citizen currently in the DRC has tested positive for Ebola. The UK has well-established procedures for dealing with cases like this, and those processes have been activated. Further information will be shared in due course as appropriate. The risk to the UK public from Ebola remains low.”
The patient is expected to be taken to the Royal Free Hospital in London, one of only two UK facilities equipped to treat Ebola cases, alongside the Royal Victoria in Newcastle. The hospital’s high-level isolation unit is run by a specialist team of doctors, nurses and laboratory staff.
The unit includes a special tent with controlled ventilation that still allows NHS staff to provide care. All the air leaving the unit is cleaned, so there is no risk to anyone inside or outside the hospital.
Ebola is a severe and often fatal illness, with death rates in past outbreaks ranging from 25 to 90 per cent. Symptoms typically appear between two and 21 days after exposure and can include fever, muscle pain, fatigue, diarrhoea, vomiting and unexplained bleeding.
There have been only four confirmed Ebola cases in the UK to date — one in 1976 linked to a laboratory incident, and three among health workers returning from the West Africa outbreak in 2014–2015.
Professor Emma Thomson, director of the MRC-University of Glasgow Centre for Virus Research, said: “The UK is extremely well prepared to care for patients with Ebola. Although Bundibugyo virus, the cause of the current outbreak, can cause severe disease and is highly infectious through direct contact with infected bodily fluids, the Royal Free has state-of-the-art isolation facilities and highly experienced clinical teams. Strict protocols are in place to protect healthcare workers and prevent onward transmission. The risk to the wider UK public is extremely low.”
Dr Damien Tully, an infectious disease expert at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, said: “The infection of a British healthcare worker with Ebola is deeply concerning, but it is not entirely unexpected. Healthcare workers are on the frontline of these outbreaks, often treating severely ill patients under extremely challenging conditions. Even with rigorous protective measures, accidental exposures can occur.”
He emphasised that the case does not indicate a higher risk to the UK public. Dr Tully said: “Unlike respiratory viruses such as Covid-19 and influenza, that can spread through the air, Ebola is transmitted primarily through direct contact with infected bodily fluids, and people are not generally infectious until they develop symptoms. For the UK public, the risk from this planned medical evacuation is extremely low.”
This is the first time a British national has contracted Ebola linked to the ongoing outbreak in the DRC.
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