Russia Denies Second Plague Infection Case Amid Global Concern
Health watchdog states lab worker's death was from pneumonia of unknown origin, refuting reports of onward transmission.
Russia’s public health watchdog, Rospotrebnadzor, has denied that a lab worker who died in Siberia spread infection to another person, pushing back against global concerns over a suspected case of pneumonic plague. The agency stated that the lab worker, employed at a plague research institute in Irkutsk, died of pneumonia of unknown origin.
According to Rospotrebnadzor, extensive testing found no evidence that the illness was caused by any of the pathogens the worker handled. The agency informed the World Health Organization that no plague cases have been registered in the Irkutsk region. In a statement, Rospotrebnadzor dismissed reports of a second person falling ill after contact with the deceased worker as fake.
Maria Van Kerkhove, WHO director of Epidemic and Pandemic Management, stated on Wednesday that the U.N. health agency was unaware of the cause of the woman's death on October 2, which some unconfirmed reports in Russia attributed to pneumonic plague, a highly contagious form of the disease. Van Kerkhove urged Russia to provide more information.
The WHO has requested further details regarding the cause of the severe pneumonia, the specific pathogen involved in the public health measures, and the reports of a second employee suffering from pneumonia of undetermined cause. The Irkutsk institute is a century-old facility dedicated to studying plague in Siberia, where the disease is endemic in wild animal populations.
Rospotrebnadzor reported on Wednesday that it had implemented a full range of anti-epidemic measures, noting the deceased worker had been vaccinated and possessed immunity to dangerous infections. An investigation into biological safety protocols at the institute found no emergencies involving pathogens, and confirmed that all safety measures were observed.
Russian authorities have maintained a tight control over information concerning the case, with national state-controlled media largely avoiding the subject. Some news outlets reportedly retracted earlier reports related to the incident.