Almost 200 people have been placed under medical observation in Russia’s Irkutsk region in eastern Siberia after a scientist died from suspected exposure to plague – but which authorities are strenuously denying – reports CNBC.
According to local media reports, 189 people were being monitored after the illness of an employee at an anti-plague research institute in Irkutsk.
Russia’s public health watchdog Rospotrebnadzor said on Sunday that she had been diagnosed with “pneumonia of unknown etiology” and that the “sanitary and epidemiological situation in the Irkutsk region and the cities of Irkutsk and Shelekhov remained stable”.
The agency said expanded testing had not detected micro-organisms linked to her work, and that there had been “no accidents involving pathogenic micro-organisms at the institute”.
But while the authorities have not publicly confirmed the cause of death, media outlets both linked to the state and independent, are reporting the case, sparking speculation of a cover up, reports Newsweek.
The woman had died two days after hospital admission and being placed on a ventilator, according to independent Russian language outlet People of Baikal, which named her as Daria Shipilova (28)
The update comes on the heels of local media reports on Friday that an employee at an anti-plague institute had fallen ill with suspected pneumonic plague after returning from a work trip to Buryatia, where an outbreak had been reported near the border with Mongolia.
The woman had apparently told colleagues she had accidentally broken a test tube with live bacteria while collecting samples for testing.
The case was reported to be pneumonic, or lung-based plague, which according to the WHO is the most virulent form of the disease and can be transmitted via respiratory particles to other humans.
The Mash Telegram channel, which has links to Russia’s authorities, reported that the woman had displayed the symptoms after returning from Buryatia and that the disease was recorded by its border with Mongolia.
But Buryatia’s government head Alexei Tsydenov denied she had visited the republic. He posted on social media that while she probably had died of plague, there were no outbreaks in the republic, including in areas bordering Mongolia.
“The source of infection stems from circumstances unrelated to Buryatia,” he posted.
At least 197 people who may have had contact with her have been placed under medical isolation, with local media reporting on Sunday that at least four Irkutsk hospitals had been closed for quarantine for three weeks and that patient visits are prohibited.
A healthcare source told the outlet that doctors are “already openly talking about plague” even though no official statement by authorities has confirmed this.
Meanwhile, authorities have cancelled planned public events in Irkutsk, while police have opened a criminal investigation into potential health safety violations.
On Saturday, the Irkutsk Aluminum Smelter – in Shelekhov – introduced a mask mandate, according to a statement by its director who said that meetings had taken place involving Anna Popova, Russia’s chief sanitary doctor.
“Rospotrebnadzor is implementing the necessary set of anti-epidemic measures,” the statement said, without referring directly to the plague.
Newsweek article – Map Shows Countries Hit by Plague as Russian Lab Worker Dies (Open access)
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