Europe Watch

The CDC is monitoring a suspected plague death at a Russian research institute after reports that nearly 200 people who had contact with a laboratory technician were placed under medical observation.

The woman worked at the Irkutsk Anti-Plague Institute in Siberia. Russian authorities have not confirmed plague as the cause of her death, and how she may have become infected remains unclear.

Russian health officials said Tuesday that no plague cases had been detected among her contacts, Reuters reported. The reported monitoring of nearly 200 people does not establish that they were exposed to plague.

U.S. officials are tracking the case, though the CDC said there is no indication of a broader threat to Americans.

“CDC is aware of and closely monitoring reports of a suspected case of pneumonic plague in the Irkutsk region of Russia that resulted in a death. We are working across the U.S. government to assess developments as additional information becomes available,” the agency wrote on X.

The State Department also said it was following the reports.

“We are aware of reports of a fatal case of suspected pneumonic plague in Irkutsk Oblast, Russia,” an official with the State Department told NewsNation. “We are monitoring the situation closely with the CDC and our other interagency partners.”

Russia denies plague cases after laboratory technician’s death; US demands ‘transparency’ as WHO monitors situation.

Russian authorities have denied that they imposed anti-plague measures after a laboratory technician died of suspected pneumonic plague in a case which has drawn international scrutiny.

Russian media reported that a 28-year-old woman named Darya Shipilova, who had been working at the Irkutsk Anti-plague Research Institute of Siberia and the Far East, died from suspected pneumonic plague on Friday.

Russian authorities told the World Health Organization (WHO) Tuesday that “no cases of plague” have been recorded in the Irkutsk Oblast region of Siberia, according to the UN health agency, after reports that a lab worker had died of possible pneumonic plague.

However, the WHO says Russian officials have not yet told the agency what the pathogen that killed the lab worker is.

“WHO is aware of media reports that a laboratory worker in Irkutsk oblast, in the Russian Federation, died of suspected pneumonic plague, and that nearly 200 of her contacts were under medical observation and being tested,” the WHO said.

“On 3 October, WHO asked the Russian authorities under the International Health Regulations (IHR) for any further information they had, so we could assess the risk. The IHR asks countries to respond within 24 hours acknowledging WHO’s request and then provide additional public health information within 48 hours.”

The home of a Russian anti-plague scientist whose mystery death triggered fears of a deadly Black Death outbreak was repeatedly disinfected by teams wearing gas masks and protective suits in the hours after she died.

Daria Shipilova’s grieving mother Svetlana, a doctor, revealed the 28-year-old researcher has not been buried – because she and other relatives are locked in quarantine. She said of doctors treating Daria while reflecting on her own practise: ‘I saved more than one patient like that, but they didn’t save my daughter.

“They simply let my daughter die.” She revealed she has not been told the cause of her daughter’s death four days afterwards.

“I’m waiting for it to become official. Not just something in the media; it has to be an official document. It’s very hard for me right now. This whole spectacle drags on,” she said. There were claims that Russia has hidden a serious infection – possibly the Black Death plague.