Nearly 200 individuals in Russia’s Irkutsk region of eastern Siberia have been placed under medical surveillance due to suspected plague exposure, local media reported. The measures follow the death of a woman employed at an anti-plague research institute in the area.
Local reports indicate that 189 people are being monitored following the illness and subsequent death of the institute employee. Alexei Tsydenov, the head of the neighboring Republic of Buryatia, confirmed that the woman succumbed to an unspecified form of plague.
Rospotrebnadzor, Russia’s public health watchdog, stated on Sunday that the patient had initially been diagnosed with “pneumonia of unknown etiology.” The agency emphasized that extended testing did not identify microorganisms associated with the employee’s work, and authorities maintain that the sanitary and epidemiological conditions in the Irkutsk region, as well as the cities of Irkutsk and Shelekhov, remain stable.
The incident follows earlier reports from Friday citing the Russian Telegram channel Mash, which alleged that a 27-year-old staff member at the anti-plague institute fell ill with suspected pneumonic plague after returning from a work trip to Buryatia. The report claimed an outbreak had been detected near the border with Mongolia.
According to Axios, the White House is tracking the situation and related quarantine measures. A Trump administration official told the outlet that the administration is aware of the outbreak, is monitoring developments, and is assessing potential responses.
Officials from the Russian and Moscow ministries of health, the World Health Organization, and the U.S. State Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment from CNBC.
The fact that she was initially misdiagnosed with pneumonia is exactly why we need better surveillance now.
Wait, the WHO hasn’t commented yet? That silence is pretty loud given how fast these things spread.
Pneumonic plague is serious. Hopefully contact tracing works fast in this remote area.