Nov. 2014 story: Fort Bliss 1 of 5 bases, posts for US troops will be housed after Ebola missions in Africa

The top U.S. military officer has designated five U.S. bases where American troops would be housed and isolated for 21 days upon returning from Africa after serving in the Ebola response mission, U.S. officials said Friday.

Army Gen. Martin Dempsey, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, signed a plan that lists Fort Hood and Fort Bliss, Texas; Fort Bragg, North Carolina; Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington; and Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Virginia, as bases where troops would be quarantined. The U.S. also hopes to use two bases in Italy and Germany for returning troops based in that region.

Military service members are required to undergo 21 days of isolation and monitoring, while Defense Department civilians can choose to go through the quarantine period or not.

The plan exempts military personnel who travel to Africa for short-term visits and have very limited contact with people there, such as military staff traveling with a senior official who only stops in the country for a day or two. Any final decision on individual service members would be up to their senior military commanders.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren’t authorized to discuss the plan publicly, pending an announcement by the Pentagon.

Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel approved the 21-day isolation period for U.S. troops late last month, but gave military leaders 15 days to provide him with a full plan on how the quarantines would be implemented.

There are close to 1,800 U.S. troops in Liberia and Senegal for the Ebola mission, along with almost 100 contractors and nearly 60 Defense Department civilians.

Maj. Gen. Darryl A. Williams, the former commander in charge of the U.S. response in Liberia, was placed in isolation in Vicenza, Italy, along with a number of his troops and staff when they returned from their deployment to West Africa late last month. None had any signs of Ebola.

The Army Chief of Staff, Gen. Ray Odierno, directed that all soldiers returning from Africa go through a 21-day isolation period. Shortly after his decision, military leaders recommended that all U.S. troops follow the same procedure, and Hagel agreed.

That policy goes beyond precautions recommended by the Obama administration for civilians,

Officials have said the difference reflect the facts that troops are in West Africa in greater numbers, for longer periods of time and are not there by choice. They also said they took into account concerns among family members and the communities from which the troops are deploying.

Fort Bliss released the following statement about the post’s role:

As part of the United States’ effort to prevent the Ebola virus from being introduced and transmitted to America, the Department of Defense announced today that Fort Bliss will host a 21-day controlled monitoring area for all military servicemembers returning from Operation United Assistance.

While the exact number of troops and their dates of redeployment from West Africa to Fort Bliss have not been announced, Fort Bliss is fully manned, equipped, trained and prepared to receive the returning servicemembers and complete this essential mission.

Our highest priority is the health and safety of our military and civilian communities, and implementing this prudent and comprehensive approach will ensure the US military is taking all necessary steps to protect our communities’ health and safety.

The majority of the military transitioning through Fort Bliss will have had minimal to zero contact with the local population – and no direct exposure to Ebola or symptomatic patients – and their overall risk of having contracted Ebola is low.

We must exercise due diligence in our approach to reintegrating our servicemembers with their units, families, friends and the community. It is our intent to ensure Soldiers accomplish this in a safe, efficient and expeditious manner while minimizing Ebola exposure risk.

All Soldiers undergoing controlled monitoring will be treated with dignity, respect and compassion while being afforded essential quality of life equipment and services as they undergo their mandatory 21-day controlled monitoring period.