Claims of a possible laboratory exposure remain unconfirmed. Officials said tests found no pathogen linked to the worker’s job.
Russian authorities have not confirmed that a worker who died in the Irkutsk region was infected with plague. Rospotrebnadzor said tests found no microorganisms linked to her professional activities. Reports of a possible infection after a laboratory incident remain unconfirmed.
Local accounts alleged that the 28-year-old technician may have broken a tube containing pneumonic plague bacteria. Journalist Pavel Stepanov identified her as Darya Shipilova. The Associated Press reported that Russian health authorities described the illness as pneumonia of unknown origin and said tests detected no organisms linked to the woman’s work.
After her death, the hospital in Shelekhov was placed under quarantine and its laboratory halted operations. Identified contacts were put under medical observation. Rospotrebnadzor head Anna Popova met regional officials. Authorities said anti-epidemic measures were under way and public events in Irkutsk were cancelled.
Pneumonic plague is caused by Yersinia pestis. The World Health Organization says it can spread through respiratory particles and is treatable with antibiotics when detected early. Reports of a laboratory incident do not by themselves confirm a diagnosis or transmission.
Rospotrebnadzor described the region’s sanitary and epidemiological situation as stable and urged the public to rely on official information. Media accounts of a possible exposure differ from the published official test results.