Dozens quarantined after Russian plague institute worker dies of unexplained pneumonia
publishers 14articles 14first reported 5 Oct, 06:30 UTCdeveloping since 5 Oct · 9 editions
Russian authorities quarantined dozens of people and placed roughly 200 under medical observation after a researcher at a Siberian plague institute died from pneumonia of undetermined origin, according to reports from RTÉ News and Ars Technica.
The researcher, identified by local media as 28-year-old Darya Shipilova, worked at the Irkutsk Anti-Plague Research Institute of Siberia and the Far East. She reportedly became ill in late September and died overnight between October 1 and 2. Several hospitals were also reported to be under quarantine.
Unconfirmed accounts claimed Shipilova had broken a test tube containing *Yersinia pestis*, the bacterium that causes plague. Irkutsk regional governor Igor Kobzev said an expert commission found no microorganisms associated with her professional work in her biological samples. He said no additional institute employees had sought medical treatment and described the region’s epidemiological situation as stable.
Russia’s public health agency, Rospotrebnadzor, said Shipilova died from pneumonia of an unknown cause. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov urged the public to rely on the agency’s statements rather than rumors.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said American officials were monitoring the situation but saw no cause for alarm, citing limited travel between the United States and Russia. Plague can take several forms, including pneumonic plague, which can spread through close contact and can be fatal without early treatment.
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Written from 6 articles, 2 with the publisher's own text; 6 independent newsrooms once syndicated copies count as one; this version written 6 h after the record first saw the story; the editor kept it as written.
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