A dangerous plague outbreak may have started in Russia: authorities remain silent

In the Irkutsk region, after the death of an employee of the anti-plague institute, 189 people have been placed in quarantine, and mass events have been canceled. Authorities have not named the disease, limiting themselves to the phrase "dangerous infectious disease." The Sun suggests a cover-up of the scale of a pneumonic plague outbreak.

In the Irkutsk region of Russia, suspicions have arisen about an outbreak of pneumonic plague. Daria Shipilova, a 28-year-old employee of the Irkutsk Anti-Plague Institute, died, presumably infected during an expedition on the border with Mongolia. Subsequently, 189 people were placed in quarantine, and mass events in the region were canceled. Regional authorities, including Governor Igor Kobzev, have not officially named the disease, using the phrase "dangerous infectious disease." The British publication The Sun reports that Russian authorities may be hiding the true scale of the situation, but there is no official confirmation of a mass outbreak. Residents have begun mass purchasing of antibiotics, leading to shortages in some pharmacies. The head of Rospotrebnadzor, Anna Popova, has arrived in the Irkutsk region. Epidemiologist Mikhail Favorov considers this a sign of the seriousness of the situation and also suggests a cover-up of information. Pneumonic plague is dangerous due to airborne transmission.