Russian lab worker's death from unknown pneumonia raises infection leak fears

A laboratory technician at a Russian anti-plague research institute in Shelekhov, Siberia, died last week from pneumonia of unknown origin, triggering international alarm over a potential dangerous infection leak. Rospotrebnadzor, Russia's infectious disease oversight body, confirmed the diagnosis of "pneumonia of unknown aetiology" but stated the regional situation remains stable. The incident has raised fears of pneumonic plague, a respiratory form of Yersinia pestis transmissible between humans via airborne droplets, prompting enhanced safety protocols and medical observation of nearly 200 people. The institute, founded in 1934, serves as a major scientific and anti-epidemic center for especially dangerous bacterial and viral infections across Siberia and the Far East, employing 95 scientific staff including 13 doctors and 40 candidates of medical and biological sciences.