"There is no plague": why the Russian authorities' version raises big questions

In Shelekhov, 28-year-old laboratory assistant Daria Shipilova of the Irkutsk Anti-Plague Institute died. Russian authorities claim there is no plague, yet impose large-scale security measures: quarantines in hospitals, a mask mandate at a factory, and checks on passengers from Irkutsk. Neighboring countries have tightened sanitary controls.

On the night of October 2, 28-year-old laboratory assistant Daria Shipilova of the Irkutsk Anti-Plague Institute died in Shelekhov (Irkutsk Region). She was hospitalized with severe pneumonia and placed on a ventilator, but could not be saved. Rospotrebnadzor stated that plague was not detected, and the cause of death was listed as pneumonia of unknown origin. However, the scale of the measures taken contradicts official assurances: about 200 contact persons are under observation, most hospitalized; at least five hospitals, including a children's hospital and a maternity ward, have been closed for three weeks; a mandatory mask mandate has been introduced at the Irkutsk Aluminum Plant; in Moscow, passengers from Irkutsk have their temperatures checked. A criminal case has been opened for violation of sanitary rules resulting in death. Online, a version about a broken test tube with plague bacteria has spread, but it is based on anonymous sources. Some information, according to local Telegram channels, is being removed from public access. Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and Tajikistan have tightened sanitary controls at their borders. The US State Department is in contact with the CDC, and some American politicians have called for restricting air travel with Russia. The article questions the official version of the Russian authorities, pointing to a discrepancy between claims of no threat and the scale of the restrictions imposed.