Nearly 200 under observation after plague kills lab worker in Siberia's Irkutsk region

Nearly 200 people are under medical observation in Siberia after a laboratory worker died from plague, regional officials confirmed Friday. The woman, an employee at an anti-plague institute, reportedly broke a test tube containing live bacteria. The worker, identified as Daria Sh., was hospitalized Tuesday with severe pneumonia and died Thursday after being placed on a ventilator. At least 197 contacts are isolated, including over 100 in hospital wards, with authorities reporting no signs of illness among them so far. Officials canceled public events in Irkutsk and opened a criminal investigation into potential health safety violations. The infection is suspected to be pneumonic plague, which can spread between humans, though the exact form was not specified.