Dozens Quarantined in Siberia After Plague Institute Worker Dies
IRKUTSK, Oct 5 (Saudi Arabia Breaking News) — Russian authorities have quarantined dozens of people in Siberia after a laboratory worker at a plague research institute died from pneumonia of unknown origin, while officials said no new cases had been detected and there was no evidence of a laboratory accident.
Local media identified the woman as Darya Shipilova, 28, an employee of the Irkutsk Anti-Plague Research Institute of Siberia and the Far East.
Authorities said the cause of her illness had not been established and described her death as resulting from pneumonia of unknown aetiology.
Russia’s health watchdog, Rospotrebnadzor, said the institute had found no evidence of incidents involving the handling of pathogens after social media reports claimed the worker had dropped a test tube containing live bacteria.
Anna Popova, head of Rospotrebnadzor, travelled to the Irkutsk region for an emergency meeting over the weekend.
People known to have been in contact with Shipilova were placed under quarantine and medical observation, while parts of the hospital in Shelekhov where she died were cordoned off.
An aluminium plant in the area also instructed employees to wear masks.
Irkutsk regional governor Igor Kobzev said no additional staff from the Anti-Plague Institute had sought medical attention in recent days.
He said all known contacts had been identified, examined and placed under medical supervision, adding that authorities considered the situation to be under control.
Officials also said there was no evidence linking Shipilova’s death to her work at the institute.
Plague occurs naturally in parts of Siberia, where the bacterium that causes the disease, Yersinia pestis, is present among some wild mammals and fleas. Human cases in Russia are rare.
Pneumonic plague affects the lungs and can spread through infectious respiratory droplets. Reuters reported that the disease can be treated with antibiotics when detected early.
