Migrant workers employed by the US defence contractor KBR on the British-owned island of Diego Garcia have expressed concerns for their safety after the recent deaths of two of their colleagues, the Observer has learned.

The most recent death on Diego Garcia, which is host to a strategic American military base in the British Indian Ocean Territory, came on 5 January. Relemay Fabula Gan, 41, from the Philippines, died after suffering a collapsed lung following several weeks of illness after a Covid diagnosis, her family said.

Diego Garcia does not have a hospital-grade health facility; workers and military personnel who become seriously ill on the island are typically airlifted to a hospital in Singapore.

Gan had been sick for several weeks on the base before her death. Her family and colleagues believe she could have been saved if she had been taken off the island for treatment. The family said Gan had no underlying health conditions and was an award-winning amateur cyclist.

KBR said that Gan’s death was a tragedy. In a statement, it highlighted that she died after being sent to the US military clinic on Diego Garcia for medical care...

KBR, previously known as Kellogg Brown & Root, is the main contractor for the base, where it employs about 1,200 workers from the Philippines, India, Kenya and Mauritius.