

Video Journalist Ben C. Solomon has been covering the Ebola crisis in Sierra Leone and Liberia for The New York Times since August. Working with Sheri Fink, a New York Times reporter and a physician, and Daniel Berehulak, a photographer, he recently did a video on an American-run clinic in rural Liberia. Earlier this month, he documented an ambulance crew as it picked up sick patients — and dead bodies — in Monrovia.

Mr. Solomon spoke with James Estrin from Monrovia. Their conversation has been edited.



Q.

Tell me about the people you’ve been covering.

A.

I’ve met health workers who are very brave and very dedicated and overwhelmed a lot of the time. In their stories you find some of the most amazing acts of courage and dedication. I’m proud to be able to share those. And you meet people who are sick and people who survived.

When you talk to people about their families you find out quickly it’s never just one person in a family that gets sick. It’s always a group. Ebola is a family virus and it preys on intimacy. So when people are close, when people are together, it spreads among them. It’s so sad to see people get the disease from just trying to comfort a sick mother or sick son.

There are a lot of stories of people trying to do the right thing, but who don’t get the right education on taking the proper precautions to protect themselves.

Q.

You’ve done risky assignments before, like covering Libya and Syria and Ukraine. How does this compare?

A.

The danger is invisible. You never know when you are around something that could kill you. You really have to stay vigilant every time you’re outside working. This is a different kind of risk factoring process. It’s hard because it requires a lot of focus and a lot of dedication, but at the same time it’s really rewarding work.

The courage of some of the people I’ve met is really moving and inspiring so whenever you get the chance to give them the coverage they deserve it’s a really endearing thing.

Q.

What do you wear? Full protective clothing must be very hot.

A.

Each situation requires a different set of clothing and safety measures. We don’t walk around all the time in the same protective suits you see in a lot of the pictures.

There are times in dangerous situations when we have to wear those hazmat suits which are called P.P.E., or personal protective equipment. You have to judge each scenario differently — make your best picks for the places you are going.

If you wear those things all the time, people won’t talk to you because you’re just a big white-covered robot. At the same time, you need to protect yourself and factor in how you can get intimate with people and get people to understand you’re human and you’re compassionate. It’s a delicate balance.

Q.

How is this different from your previous assignments?

A.

This is the most stressful. When you’re covering a war or conflict where there is shooting or bombing you can usually leave and go back to a safer place to sleep. You can exhale and kind of relax. But here you never know if you’re safe. There is always the worry that you came in contact with the virus.

Many nights I wake up in the middle of the night and check my temperature and worry about what I’ve done the previous days. There’s always the question of whether you’re doing things right or not.

Q.

Many people would not choose to cover Ebola because of the danger. Why do you want to do this? On a certain level it almost seems irrational.

A.

I think my mom would agree with you.

It’s very easy to look at this story on the basis of numbers and how it’s spreading to Western countries and the hysteria that goes with that but on the ground it’s a very different story.

People are suffering and in very human ways going through some of the most difficult things you can experience. They can’t touch family members who are sick and this leads to these very sobering moments of how to express love when you can’t even be close to someone who you really value. So to me it’s really worth it.

Even if it is extremely dangerous, which it is, you can manage yourself, manage your safety and manage your stress. And if you do succeed in sharing these human stories it’s really valuable.

I’ve never been in a place where I’ve seen so much humanity and so much courage and hope.

Follow @bcsolomon, @JamesEstrin and @nytimesphoto on Twitter. Lens is also on Facebook.