Second Lt. Matt Hutto volunteered to travel to West Africa, packed his things and said farewell to his friends this month after President Barack Obama announced the U.S. is sending thousands of troops there to respond to the Ebola crisis.
The Augusta native is among dozens of Georgians traveling to Liberia. Their mission could involve nearly 4,000 U.S. troops, last six months to a year and cost an estimated $750 million.
Hundreds of troops are already on the ground in West Africa, helping contain the raging Ebola virus, which has already killed more than 4,500 people and sickened thousands of others in Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone. The soldiers will be setting up Ebola treatment centers, handling engineering projects and overseeing logistics.
They are supporting the U.S. Agency for International Development and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which are responding to requests from the Liberian government.
Fort Benning in Columbus is sending six soldiers with the 463rd Medical Detachment to oversee food safety for fellow troops. Fort Gordon in Augusta is dispatching 25 soldiers with the 35th Signal Brigade to help with communications. And Fort Stewart in Hinesville is sending 32 soldiers from the 82nd Civil Affairs Battalion to serve as liaisons between the military, USAID and other groups.
This will be the first deployment for Hutto, a member of the Virginia-based 53rd Transportation Battalion. He said he is honored to join his unit’s mission, which will be responsible for moving medical and construction equipment for a new Ebola treatment center.
“This is one thing I signed up to do is to go and help other people — to do something bigger than myself,” said Hutto, 24, who graduated last year from the University of North Georgia in Dahlonega.
Hutto and his fellow Georgia soldiers are not expected to come in direct contact with Ebola patients. But, as a precaution, they have been given protective gear and extensive training to prevent catching the disease.
Health officials will monitor the troops for exposure to Ebola throughout their deployment and for 21 days afterward, according to a U.S. Defense Department memo. In a Pentagon briefing with reporters this month, Gen. David Rodriguez, the head of U.S. Africa Command, said the military has consulted the CDC, Doctors Without Borders and the World Health Organization about its precautions.
“The health and safety of the team supporting this mission is our priority,” he said. “Let me assure you, by providing pre-deployment training, adhering to strict medical protocols while deployed, and carrying out carefully planned reintegration measures based on risk and exposure, I am confident that we can ensure our service members’ safety and the safety of their families and the American people.”
Sgt. 1st Class Juan Steele of Evans said his confidence has been boosted by the training he received to protect himself against the virus, plus his previous deployments to Iraq and Kosovo.
“The training is superb,” said Steele, a 35th Signal Brigade soldier. “We got a lot of information about the disease and the culture and the people. That way we can pretty much be ready for anything that might come our way.”
Ebola is not the only concern. The troops got additional training and equipment to ward off tropical diseases such as malaria, which is spread by mosquitoes.
“Everyone goes down with a pop-up bed net. It’s kind of a wired, spring-loaded thing that goes on top of your bed,” said Lt. Col. Alisa Wilma of Columbus, the commander of the 463rd Medical Detachment. “And you spray it down with Deet and you crawl into it and you sleep in that so mosquitoes don’t bite you.”
Hutto’s parents visited him this month at Joint Base Langley-Eustis in Virginia and spent time with him at Busch Gardens in Williamsburg. They have agreed to take care of his dog, Beretta, while he is away. He is selling his truck and his boat. And he recently completed a will, a routine practice before military deployment.
On Wednesday, he posted a goodbye message for his friends on Facebook: “I’m off to Africa! I’m sorry I didn’t get to see everyone before I left! I love y’all and everyone take care! I’ll see ya when I get back! God Bless.”
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