Russia plague scare: Nearly 200 face quarantine after lab worker dies

A suspected plague case in Siberia has prompted quarantine measures after a 28-year-old worker at an anti-plague research institute died. Here's all you need to know

A suspected plague case in Russia's Siberian region has triggered quarantine measures and contact tracing after a laboratory worker died following severe pneumonia. However, Russian health authorities have not confirmed that she was infected with plague.

 

What happened

 

A 28-year-old laboratory technician, Darya Shipilova, who worked at the Irkutsk Anti-Plague Research Institute, died after developing severe pneumonia, according to reports. She was admitted to hospital on September 29, placed on a ventilator, and died two days later. Media reports say she had allegedly broken a test tube containing live Yersinia pestis, the bacterium that causes plague, while working at the institute.

 

The Moscow Times, citing regional media and local officials, reported that Shipilova had told medical staff that she had accidentally broken a test tube containing live bacteria while collecting samples. She was hospitalised in Shelekhov, near Irkutsk, and died after being placed on a ventilator.

 

 

However, according to a report by Business Today, Rospotrebnadzor, Russia's national public health and consumer rights agency, has said there had been no accident involving pathogenic microorganisms at the institute and that no microorganisms linked to Shipilova's professional work were detected in samples taken from her.

 

Nearly 200 people under observation

 

The Moscow Times reported that at least 197 people who may have come into contact with Shipilova were placed under medical isolation, including more than 100 in hospital wards. Irkutsk Governor Igor Kobzev said identified contacts had been placed under medical observation, with none showing symptoms and laboratory tests returning negative results. Several hospitals in the Irkutsk region have introduced quarantine measures

 

Is it actually plague?

 

Russian authorities have not yet confirmed plague as the cause of death. Rospotrebnadzor had described the illness as “pneumonia of unknown cause” and said the epidemiological situation in Irkutsk and Shelekhov remained stable.

 

Irkutsk region Governor Igor Kobzev urged the public to remain calm. “All identified contact persons have been placed under medical observation. As of today, the contacts show no signs of illness, and their laboratory test results are negative,” Kobzev wrote on Telegram on Friday. He did not mention the reports of the laboratory worker’s death.

 

Why pneumonic plague is a concern

 

While Tsydenov’s statement did not specify the form of plague, media reports have described the suspected infection as pneumonic plague. It affects the lungs and can spread between people through respiratory droplets, unlike Bubonic plague, the form historically associated with the Black Death in Russia, which is generally transmitted through infected fleas.

 

What happens next

 

For now, there is no officially confirmed plague outbreak in Russia. The immediate focus is on determining the cause of Shipilova's death, monitoring people who came into contact with her and establishing whether there was any laboratory exposure. The precautionary response, including quarantine and contact tracing, has expanded despite the absence of confirmed transmission among those under observation. As of the latest reports, the monitored contacts had shown no symptoms and had tested negative.