Has the plague returned to Siberia? Panic in Russia after the death of a laboratory worker

An employee at an anti-plague institute in the Irkutsk region has died after being diagnosed with "pneumonia of unknown origin". Residents of Russia’s Irkutsk region are deeply concerned by reports of a possible outbreak of pneumonic plague in this Siberian area.

Darya Shipilova died in the early hours of October 2 in the intensive care unit of the district hospital in the town of Shelekhov. According to local media, she broke a test tube containing the plague pathogen.

The incident prompted the authorities to impose quarantine measures. Around 200 people have been placed under strict medical supervision. The outlet "Baikal People" reports that several hospitals in Irkutsk were immediately closed and placed in quarantine over the past three weeks.

Where did the plague come from? The deceased was a 28-year-old laboratory assistant specialising in research on dangerous pathogens. According to the main account reported by her colleagues and independent media, on September 25, while working with live biological material in the laboratory, she accidentally broke a test tube containing the dangerous bacterium Yersinia pestis.

Two days later, Shipilova’s condition suddenly deteriorated. She was rushed to the Shelekhov district hospital. At first, doctors, unaware of what had happened, suspected a severe case of coronavirus and admitted her to a specialised Covid unit. However, the rapid deterioration and the clinical picture forced them to carry out rapid tests for highly dangerous infections.

The patient was put on a ventilator, but her life could not be saved.

The pulmonary form of the plague develops extremely quickly and, without prompt and targeted antibiotic treatment, is almost always fatal.