Ebola patient admitted to Berlin hospital

More than 36 hours after a house collapsed in the center of the eastern German city of Görlitz, emergency services are still searching for three missing people – but hope is fading.

Local fire department chief Anja Weigel said, “We are sure we will find the missing people – but I can’t say what condition they are in.” “We are now in the second day of the operation, which has been going on since 5:30 pm on Monday. The chances are clearly diminishing, but if we are lucky, someone may be trapped in the debris. Maybe a miracle will happen.”

The 19th-century building collapsed on Monday evening for reasons that are still unclear, although police suspect a possible gas explosion. As a precautionary measure, gas, water and electricity to neighboring houses have also been shut off while the search continues.

According to local media, the three missing include two female Romanian tourists, aged 25 and 26, and a 48-year-old man with German and Bulgarian citizenship, who were in Görlitz for work. No trace of any of them has been found yet.

Fire Department Chief Weigel cautioned, “Pedestrians could be buried on the sidewalk in front of the building.” “We have to assume the worst and we may only get body parts.”

An American doctor infected with the Ebola virus in Congo was admitted to Charite Hospital in Berlin early Wednesday.

The German Ministry of Health granted the United States’ request to treat the patient in Germany rather than the United States due to the shorter travel time from Uganda and Charite’s experience in dealing with Ebola.

The patient was flown to Berlin on a special medical plane and then taken to the hospital in a specially designed vehicle under police surveillance.

Six people with whom the infected person had contact have also been sent to Germany.

The German Health Ministry has assured the public that there is no risk of the deadly virus spreading to the general population.

Charite Hospital specializes in treating such cases and the patient is being kept in a completely separate ward, separate from the rest of the clinic.

Ebola is spread by direct contact with infected people or their bodily fluids and usually starts with flu-like symptoms before the condition worsens. The ultimate cause of death is usually multiple organ failure.

However, according to the German Health Ministry, the mortality rate drops from approximately 60% to 20%–30% after modern treatment and expert monitoring in clinics such as Berlin’s Charite.

Good morning! Welcome to DW’s coverage of what Germany is talking about on Wednesday, May 20, 2026.

An American doctor infected with the Ebola virus in Congo has been flown to Berlin for isolation treatment at the city’s famous Charite hospital.

Meanwhile, the search continues for three people missing for 36 hours after a house collapsed in the eastern German city of Görlitz.

And in sport, Bundesliga side SC Freiburg is preparing for the biggest game in the club’s history: the Europa League final against Aston Villa in Istanbul tonight.

You can watch yesterday’s news Here.