Help Stop Ebola. Help Save Lives.

Ebola Response
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A Samaritan's Purse Disaster Assistance Response Team is on the ground in the Democratic Republic of the Congo as we prepare to open two Ebola Treatment Centers in Ituri Province.

  • We've reached more than 14,000 Congolese with infection prevention programming and installed scores of handwashing stations. Containment and education measures continue in nearly two dozen health zones.
  • Construction has started on our Ebola Treatment Centers in Ituri Province as we equip our longtime partner hospital in Nyankunde and train medical workers in use of personal protective equipment (PPE).
  • Our May 24 767 flight transported almost 80,000 pounds of medical supplies and protective equipment to the region, all carried on 12 flights into DRC aboard Samaritan's Purse planes, chartered C-130s, and other aircraft.

More than two dozen Disaster Assistance Response Team (DART) members from Samaritan's Purse are on the ground in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo coordinating with the Ministry of Health across nearly two dozen health zones as reported cases of Ebola have surpassed 1,000.

We are preparing two Ebola Treatment Centers in Bunia, the capital of Ituri Province, and at our partner hospital in Nyankunde as our teams continue to work in communities to contain the spread of the disease.

A group of medical workers assisting people with ebola.
Medical teams train with PPE as Ebola patients continue to arrive at local medical centers in Ituri Province.

We are equipping staff at Nyankunde and at other locations with PPE, training, and other support as the hospital and surrounding communities continue responding to the outbreak.

“Samaritan's Purse has been on the frontlines of fighting Ebola for more than a decade, and we aren't going to stop now. We are going to do everything we can to help save lives,” said Franklin Graham, president of Samaritan's Purse. “We want people to know that God loves them, and they are not alone.”

Through an education campaign, we are actively reaching thousands of people with information on disease risks and prevention. Our water, sanitation, and hygiene teams are establishing handwashing stations and instructing in proper sanitation and hygiene to prevent disease transmission. A team of 25 Samaritan's Purse DART members is serving in multiple communities.

“The situation out there is extremely challenging," said Shannon Hamilton, our team lead on the ground in Nyankunde, where the number of cases continues to grow. "I'm thankful the Lord has opened this pathway. Our team is there to show them ‘Hey, we’re going to get you safe. We're going to support you in this. We're going to step in beside you.’”

We will continue to assist local mission hospitals and communities with establishing protocols for treatment of infected patients, prevention of person-to-person transmission, and controlling the spread. The treatment center, to be operated by Samaritan's Purse, is specifically adapted to treat Ebola patients.

Our longstanding country office is based in Bunia, the capital of hard-hit Ituri Province. Staff members there are working in Jesus' Name to provide education in disease prevention; water, sanitation, and hygiene projects; and other programming to stop spread of the virus.

Supplies from our 767 airlift on May 24 have been transported from Uganda into the area. These include the supplies and structures for Ebola Treatment Centers and desperately needed personal protective equipment for local healthcare workers who've been treating patients since the deadly outbreak.

A heavy lift loading supplies into an airplane.
Teams offload supplies from our 767 as our Ebola response continues to build in DRC.

Disaster response specialists already serving in hard-hit Ituri Province include an outbreak specialist; infection, prevention and control specialist; and medical personnel. More team members will soon join them.

"As this deadly Ebola virus spreads so does people's fear and uncertainty," Franklin Graham said. "They are in desperate need of emergency medical relief and supplies to help prevent the spread of this outbreak. That's why Samaritan's Purse is airlifting supplies to the people of the Democratic Republic of the Congo."

The Samaritan's Purse 767 cargo plane departed North Carolina headed for Africa on May 24, airlifting more than 39 tons of essential medical supplies to help combat the spread of this deadly virus. Local hospitals are desperate to receive the protective equipment for their healthcare providers.

Our organization has a long history of responding to infectious diseases, including Ebola, cholera, diphtheria, and COVID-19.

During the height of the Ebola outbreak in Liberia in 2014, Samaritan's Purse opened an Ebola Treatment Center—giving hands-on patient care—and combatted infection rates by providing hygiene training and prevention education across affected communities. Through a massive public education campaign, which included thousands of church leaders, Samaritan's Purse provided potentially life-saving information to more than 1.6 million people.

A group of medical workers assisting people with ebola in an orange plastic tarped off field.
Democratic Republic of the Congo, 2018-19

Just a few years later, in 2018, Samaritan's Purse established an Ebola Treatment Center in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, caring for more than 600 patients and continuing to educate communities on best practices to help stop the spread of the disease.

Please be in prayer for our country office team and our Disaster Assistance Response Team as we respond to this 2026 outbreak. Pray for all the people affected in central and eastern Africa and for an end to the spread of this virus.

Photos

A nighttime aerial view of the Ebola Treatment Center in Bunia shows the progress of our construction of the facility where Ebola patients will be treated by medical teams. A Group of men walking in a dirt field. A group of workers in vests standing in front of crates of supplies. A large forklift loading a crate of supplies into an airplane. A heavy lift loading supplies into an airplane. Medical workers training in front of bushes. A large group of medical workers standing in a driveway. A truck dumping large amount of gravel on the ground. Two people standing in front of the gravel. A group of people unloading emergency equipment and supplies off of a truck.c A group of people digging multiple holes in dirt. A group of people setting up a tent and medical supplies. Two workers loading cleaning supplies into a small engine plane wearing full medical body suites. People putting large plastic tarps onto the walls and ceilings in a building. A man walking in a room lined with yellow and grey tarps.
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