Health authorities in Russia’s Irkutsk region have placed 189 people under medical observation following the death of an employee from an anti-plague research institute, according to local media reports from early October. Official statements have provided different information regarding the cause of death, with one regional official citing plague and Russia’s federal public health agency diagnosing the case as pneumonia.
The events prompted a response from Alexei Tsydenov, the head of the neighboring Republic of Buryatia, who stated that the employee had died from an unspecified form of plague.
In a statement on Sunday, Russia’s public health watchdog, Rospotrebnadzor, reported the employee was diagnosed with “pneumonia of unknown etiology.” The agency said that expanded testing had not detected microorganisms related to the individual’s work. Rospotrebnadzor also stated that the sanitary and epidemiological situation in the Irkutsk region and the cities of Irkutsk and Shelekhov remained stable.
Initial reports on Friday from Russian media, citing the Telegram channel Mash, said a 27-year-old employee at the Irkutsk institute had fallen ill with suspected pneumonic plague. According to the reports, the illness began after the employee returned from a work trip to Buryatia, where an outbreak had been reported near the border with Mongolia.
The matter has received attention internationally. Axios reported on Sunday that the White House is monitoring the situation, citing a Trump administration official. The official reportedly said the administration was “aware, monitoring the outbreak, and assessing options.”
At the time of reporting, news agencies had not received responses to requests for comment from the Russian and Moscow ministries of health, the World Health Organization, or the U.S. State Department.
