Plague still kills 1,000 yearly in Asia, Africa, and the Americas

A 28-year-old woman in Russia has possibly died from the plague after breaking a test tube during research, leading to the quarantine of 200 colleagues. Local authorities deny the cause, citing pneumonia instead. The plague, known as the Black Death in the 14th century, still causes about 1,000 infections annually in regions like Central Asia, South America, Africa, and the US. The last major outbreak was in Madagascar in 2017, with hundreds of deaths. Unlike medieval times, the disease is now treatable with antibiotics, though experts stress vigilance. The most common form, bubonic plague, spreads via fleas from wild rodents, while the more contagious pneumonic form can transmit through cough droplets.