Russia Denies Plague Death of Lab Worker in Siberia's Irkutsk Region

Russian health authorities deny that a 28-year-old laboratory worker in the Irkutsk region died of plague over the weekend, stating she succumbed to "pneumonia of unknown origin." Local media had earlier reported she contracted pneumonic plague after breaking a test tube containing plague bacteria. The woman worked at Siberia's anti-plague institute, where she allegedly became infected after contact with the broken tube, dying in hospital two days later. Around 200 contacts were reportedly quarantined as a precaution, according to The Moscow Times. Rospotrebnadzor says no lab accident occurred and no microorganisms linked to her work were found in samples, calling the regional situation stable. Plague, historically deadly, now causes about 1,000 annual infections globally, with Russia's last human case around 2016.