REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, LONDON -- Britain on Saturday sent its first batch of army reserves to Sierra Leone to help tackle the Ebola outbreak, the British Ministry of Defense (MoD) said.

The reserve personnel and 100 regulars from Britain's three services departed from Royal Air Force (RAF) Brize Norton base alongside members of the Canadian military.

The personnel will operate a facility reserved to treat healthcare workers with Ebola in Sierra Leone, according to the MoD.

"We are fully committed to providing our reserve forces with the best training and support, fully integrating them with their regular counterparts," British Minister for Reserves Julian Brazier said.

The deployment of the personnel followed the completion of a nine-day, mission-specific training last week.

The number of British military personnel in Sierra Leone has kept steady at around 800, with logisticians, planners and engineers overseeing the final stages of construction on British facilities across Sierra Leone, the MoD said.

The facilities were designed to provide the infrastructure for a total of 700 beds.

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