Russian authorities have introduced “anti-epidemic measures” following the death of a laboratory worker at a Siberian institute dedicated to the study of the plague and other infectious diseases, who succumbed to a mysterious illness.
The victim, a 28-year-old female laboratory technician at the Irkutsk Research Anti-Plague Institute of Siberia in the town of Shelekhov, died after being diagnosed with a pneumonia of “unknown” origin, according to Rospotrebnadzor, the Russian agency that handles infectious diseases.
According to CNN, the mayor of the Shelekhovsky district in eastern Russia, near the Mongolian border, Maxim Modin, said authorities were implementing a “comprehensive set of anti-epidemic measures.” Officials confirmed the woman’s death last week.
Modin said the inpatient facility at the hospital where the worker was treated had been placed under quarantine, with several departments halting the discharge and admission of patients. Local media reports said other hospitals in the region had also been closed.
Modin said that, according to Rospotrebnadzor, “no micro-organisms associated with the employee’s professional duties were detected in samples taken from the patient.”
He added that no cases of infectious disease had been reported among the institute’s staff in the past 10 days, and that all of the employee’s recent contacts were being tested and examined.
Unofficial reports, including those by the independent regional news outlet Liudi Baikala, claim that nearly 200 people are under observation.
Rospotrebnadzor had earlier described the “sanitary and epidemiological situation” in Shelekhov and the regional capital, Irkutsk, as “stable.”
According to its website, the Anti-Plague Institute employs about 95 researchers. It is a major research and public health facility responsible for monitoring and preventing outbreaks of high-risk bacterial and viral infections across Siberia and Russia’s Far East.
The head of the neighbouring republic of Buryatia, Alexei Tsydenov, had earlier said the employee died “possibly from the plague.” He also noted that “there are no plague outbreaks” in Buryatia.
Pneumonic plague is one of three types of plague caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis, and it can pass easily from person to person through respiratory particles.
The other two types typically spread through contact with infected fleas, animals or infected tissues.
An aluminium plant close to the laboratory has instructed its staff to wear masks as a precaution. The plant’s director, Artem Fominikh, of the Irkutsk Aluminum Plant, also urged calm and noted that “there are many rumors and conflicting reports circulating.”
On Friday, a former head of Rospotrebnadzor, Gennady Onishchenko, said the infection in the Irkutsk region was “most likely not the plague, but even if confirmed, there will be no spread of this disease.”
Onishchenko told the state news agency TASS that the onset of cold weather would likely prevent transmission.
A spokesperson for the US State Department told CNN on Sunday that Washington was aware of the possible death due to pneumonic plague in Russia.
“We are monitoring the situation closely with the CDC and our other interagency partners,” the spokesperson said. “Many details have not been confirmed. We encourage Russian authorities to share accurate information quickly and openly.”
According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), patients with pneumonic plague develop fever, headache and weakness, as well as “a rapidly developing pneumonia with shortness of breath, chest pain, cough, and sometimes bloody or watery mucous.”
The US Department of Health and Human Services told CNN that the CDC was closely monitoring the situation in Russia, and that the “safety and security of U.S. citizens is our highest priority.”
The World Health Organization has noted that plague has a high fatality rate, but is also easily treated with antibiotics and the use of precautions to prevent infections.
