A woman who worked at the Irkutsk Anti-Plague Research Institute in Russia’s Irkutsk region died after being diagnosed with “pneumonia of unknown etiology,” state-run news agency Tass reported, citing Russian authorities.
The Russian Federal Service for the Oversight of Consumer Protection and Welfare (Rospotrebnadzor) said Sunday that expanded testing of samples from the woman found no microorganisms linked to her professional activities.
The agency said the epidemiological situation in Irkutsk and the nearby city of Shelekhov remained stable.
Local media and Telegram channels on Friday claimed that the 28-year-old woman had died of plague following an alleged laboratory accident in Shelekhov. The reports also cited quarantines at several Irkutsk hospitals, while a mask mandate was introduced at the Irkutsk Aluminum Smelter in Shelekhov.
Irkutsk Governor Igor Kobzev said an emergency regional sanitary commission had met after reports of a suspected “highly dangerous infectious” disease case. He said all identified contacts had been placed under medical observation, with no symptoms reported and laboratory tests returning “negative.”
