Nearly 200 placed under observation after plague suspect case in Irkutsk
Health authorities in Russia's Irkutsk region are monitoring 189 people after a laboratory employee died of an unspecified plague, while officials say the broader epidemiological situation remains stable.
Health officials in Russia's Irkutsk region have placed 189 individuals under medical observation following the death of a 27-year-old employee at an anti-plague research institute. The employee was diagnosed with pneumonia of unknown cause, and local media reported she may have contracted pneumonic plague after a work trip to Buryatia, where a separate outbreak had been noted near the Mongolian border.
Alexei Tsydenov, the head of the neighboring Republic of Buryatia, said the woman died from an unspecified form of plague. Russia's public health watchdog Rospotrebnadzor said the sanitary and epidemiological situation in Irkutsk and the nearby city of Shelekhov remains stable and that expanded testing has not identified any microorganisms linked to the employee's work.
"The administration is aware, monitoring the outbreak, and assessing options," a U.S. official told Axios, confirming that the White House is tracking the situation.
The Russian and Moscow ministries of health, the World Health Organization and the U.S. State Department have not responded to requests for comment.